


Julie and the Phantoms Oneshots

by Ghostwriterjatp



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Alex Mercer Has Bad Parents (Julie and The Phantoms), Anxiety, Bisexual Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms), Bobby's homophobic idc, Child Abuse, Crying, F/F, F/M, Fights, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gen, Homophobic Language, I can't end a chapter, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Sex, Julie Can See Willie, M/M, Makeup, Multi, Multiple Partners, No Smut, Okay Bobby's not homophobic after the atla au because other fics got me loving him pre-canon, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Multiple, Panic Attacks, Pansexual Luke Patterson (Julie and The Phantoms), Polyamory, Reggie Peters Has Bad Parents (Julie and The Phantoms), Suggestive Themes, chosen family, multiple AUs
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2021-01-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:00:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 22,964
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27441574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ghostwriterjatp/pseuds/Ghostwriterjatp
Summary: Some random JATP oneshots. Alex won't ever pair with a girl because he is canonically gay and only into guys. There'll be multiple AUs that might span multiple chapters, such as-Avatar: The Last Airbender (In progress)-Percy Jackson-Harry Potter
Relationships: Alex & Julie Molina, Alex & Julie Molina & Luke Patterson & Reggie, Alex & Luke Patterson (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex & Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex/Luke Patterson (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex/Luke Patterson/Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex/Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Flynn & Nick, Flynn/Julie Molina, Julie Molina & Reggie, Julie Molina/Luke Patterson, Luke Patterson & Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 133





	1. Cats

_ Alex’s PoV _

_ 1982 _

_ I was four. _

_ “Gramma, I can’t find Tiger. I think he ran away,” I squeaked on the verge of tears. _

_ My grandma frowned. “Why are you crying?” she asked. “He’s probably just grumpy and hiding.” _

_ I sniffled and went to look for the cat. I found myself outside, under the porch. I wiggled through the small space, dirtying my clothes. When I had almost hit the foundation of the house, I saw Tiger’s glowing yellow eyes glaring at me from my right. I smiled and wiped away my tears, blinking away the dirt that got in my eyes. “Tiger!” I yelled, excited to see the cat. My smile faltered when Tiger slunk away from me and lowered his body. _

_ “Tiger, what’s wrong?” I asked, nervous. I quickly realized when Tiger tightened his muscles and pounced at me. _

_ 1994 _

Joining Sunset Curve was a dream come true. I had found people who understood me. Even in the nineties, they were really accepting of my being gay and my anxiety. Bobby seemed a little on the fence about both of those things, but he never said or did anything about it. 

We had finished a rehearsal that was mostly focused on “Now or Never” and “My Name is Luke,” a song that only existed because of a lost bet. We laughed as we walked to the alley behind the Orpheum for some bad hot dogs and a salad for Bobby. When we had gotten our food, we sat on a couch and told stories.

“...so the cat bit me,” I mumbled, mouth full of food, rolling up my sleeves, “and left two scars right here where his fangs punctured my skin. That’s why I’m terrified of cats.”

My head was in Reggie’s lap and Luke’s hand in my hair as Bobby opted to stand and eat. Luke twirled my hair around his finger. “Aw, I’m sorry that happened Alex. How scared of them are you?”

I leaned into the touch. “I’ll probably have an anxiety attack if one gets too close to me, haha.”

Reggie frowned. “Well, that sucks. Good thing none of us have a cat.” He bounced his leg to shake my head a little.

I smiled. “Yeah, good thing.”

_ Bobby’s PoV _

I dragged Luke to the pet store with me. “C’mon, Luke, help me buy a cat. I promise to feed him and take care of him.”

Luke rolled his eyes. “Oh, so the bare minimum. How impressive. Way to go, Doctor Do-as-little-as-possible. Why do you suddenly want a cat so bad?”

I scraped my mind for a good reason. “They’re so cute and my sister’s been asking for one.”

Luke narrowed his eyes and pulled out his wallet. “You promise to keep it alive?”

I nodded eagerly.

Luke sighed. “Okay then, what the fuck. I’ll get you the damn cat.”

I smiled. “Thank you, you’re a legend.”

Luke smiled back, though he never met my gaze. “Yeah, yeah, whatever.”

  
_ Alex’s PoV _

Another good rehearsal. Reggie had invited me over to hang out and Luke had sent verbal threats to my parents’ house through the telephone.

“Lukeee,” I whined. “You didn’t have to do that.”

Luke shrugged. “I sure as hell did. No one told them to be homophobic assholes.”

I suppressed a smile and hugged Luke. “Whatever. I’m not happy about it.”

Luke hugged me back. “Yes, you are.”

“Shut up.”

“Never.”

I pulled away and my eyes widened as I looked toward the opening of the garage. “Fuck!”

Everyone gasped and Reggie spoke. “Did you just say ‘fuck’? Are you okay, Alex? I’ve never heard you sweaー oh.”

I barely registered his words. “Shit, shit, shit, shit.” I ran and sat behind the couch, a space small enough that I could barely fit behind it after moving the couch. I sat with my head in my knees, scared that if I looked up, the cat would jump on me like Tiger. 

I heard whispering from the other side of the couch. One thing caught my attention. “Bobby, is that the fucking cat that I bought for you?”

I heard a lot of whisper-shouting and some shuffling on the couch. I tensed, thinking it was the cat that apparently belonged to Bobby. I heard Reggie’s voice above me. “Can I join you back there? It’s okay if not, I don’t want you to feel cornered.”

I looked up, tears staining my cheeks, and nodded. Reggie sat in front of me and held his hands out. I grabbed them and he ran his thumbs in circles over the backs of my hands. “Are you okay?” he asked. I shook my head and gasped when I heard a  _ meow.  _ I felt fresh tears well up in my eyes. Reggie resumed his circles. “Are you going to be?” I shrugged and Reggie pulled me on his lap so my legs were on either side of him. He pushed the couch forward a bit so the position would be more comfortable.

“I won’t let it hurt you, okay?” he whispered. I nodded, my eyes hidden in his shoulder. Reggie laughed. “You’re getting tears on my shirt.”

I yanked my head back. “I’m sorry!”

“No, don’t be. I have five more just like it. It’s okay if you need to let it out.”

I nodded shallowly and buried my head back in his shirt.

_ Luke’s PoV _

“What the fuck, Bobby?” I nearly shouted, only holding back because I didn’t want to spook Alex.

Bobby smiled for a second before quickly wiping it from his face. “It was an accident, he must’ve gotten out and followed my scent!”

I grit my teeth. “We’re going to talk about this,” I said not as a statement but as an order. I turned around and saw the cat approaching me. It  _ mewed  _ and I heard Alex gasp from behind the couch.

“Here, kitty, kitty.” I held my hands out toward it. “Pspspspsp.” The cat cautiously walked toward my arms. “Yeah, good girl. Come here and you can go back to Bobby’s.”

_ Or the store. _

It jumped in my hands and I walked it out of the garage, not letting it go until it had been seated in Bobby’s car.

I walked back inside and said, “Alex, the cat’s gone. Are you ready to come out?”

Alex stood and stumbled toward me, his head probably hurting. He fell forward and I caught him before he hit the ground. “‘M sorry,” he whispered. “Didn’t mean to worry you guys. And sorry for cussing.”

I pet his hair, how I knew he liked me to. “It’s okay, kiddo. Don’t apologize for having an anxiety attack, we’ll always help you.”

Alex closed his eyes and embraced me. “I love you guys.”

Reggie and I looked at each other and smiled. “We love you too,” we said in unison. 

I glared at Bobby and mouthed:  _ “Take your fucking cat home.” _

Bobby raised his hands in mock surrender then left. I held Alex until his breathing steadied. I let him stand and Reggie wrapped an arm around him. 

“Come on, Alex. You can still come to my place.”

Alex’s eyes brightened. “Then let’s go!”


	2. Bet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s a hot day and Luke takes his boyfriends to the pool. 1994. Alex and Reggie are dating him but not each other. They’re still friends.

_ Reggie’s PoV _

I tried to sleep on the way to the pool, but Luke’s driving wasn’t the best. It wasn’t technically endangering anyone, but honestly, who the hell would enjoy it?

Alex whined the entire time. “Ow, Christ. Who gave you your license, I just want to talk.” “Luke, calm down, we’re not in a hurry.” “Ow, my balls!”

I snorted and held onto the armrests when we went over a small bump that thanks to our lovely driver, threw me in the air even with my seatbelt. Bobby had decided to stay home. He was definitely passively homophobic but no one had any proof to call him on it. And he was too talented to kick out of the band. I turned to Luke and stuck my tongue out. He chose to ignore me but he smiled nonetheless. I pulled out a pen and paper and scribbled down:  _ “Let’s make a bet. Whoever gets the most kisses from Luke at the end of the day gets to take his hoodie for three rehearsals and one cold night in the alley behind the Orpheum.” _

_ Alex’s response was fast. “Four rehearsals, two nights behind the Orpheum, and there should be some kinda score system in case you can do something that equals more than one kiss.” _

_ Hm, confident today, isn’t he? _

_ “Kiss is one point, making out is two, stripping three, and anything after that is a five,”  _ I wrote back.

Alex laughed. “Deal, Reggie.”

Luke nearly threw me through the windshield as he asked, “What are you guys talking about?”

I threw my hands forward to stop my head from hitting the dash. “Nothing, love. Now please focus on whatever you’re doing, that for some reason you call driving.”

Luke scoffed. "Whatever, I'm a great driver. I passed the test, didn't I?"

Alex scoffed jokingly. "And how much did you have to pay the instructor for that?"

Luke reached behind his seat and swatted Alex’s leg. Alex pouted but brightened when we sharply turned a corner and the pool came into view. My shoulder hit the door when we turned so I shot a glare at Luke. He parked and noticed my glare, deciding that a small kiss would make me feel better. I fought back a smile until I rolled my eyes and laughed. "Hey, fuck you, Luke."

Luke winked. "If you're lucky."

He got out of the car and I winked at Alex who chuckled. "Let the games begin."

_ Alex's PoV _

I offered Reggie a napkin from the glove compartment. "Keep track of my score," I suggested. "I'll keep track of yours and that way we can be sure the other isn't cheating."

I grabbed my swim gear and climbed out of the car, running to catch up with Luke. He turned around and I jumped into his arms. He held me in the air as we kissed passionately. When we pulled away, his face was red. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Reggie writing on his napkin while Luke laughed. "Did that make up for my awesome driving on the way here?"

I pretended to think profoundly. "Maybe. I still think Reggie should drive back to the garage.”

Luke kissed me again. “Still think so?”

I climbed down. “Maybe you deserve another chance.”

Luke walked toward the pool and Reggie walked next to me. "Hey, Alex. Why aren't you always this confident?"

I blushed. "I don't know. I'm scared he only likes me because of how shy I am and how outgoing he is. You have to admit it balances really well. And, well. I love him, dude. I love you too, but I'm _ in love  _ with Luke. He makes me happy. He makes me feel like I can be…"

"You?"

I smiled. "Yeah. So I don't want to scare him away."

Reggie smirked. "I love you too, Alex. Don't be mad when I win, though."

I hugged Reggie and whispered in his ear. "You don't stand a chance."

Luke yelled from about thirty feet away. "Babes, bad news! Pool's closed!" 

I furrowed my eyebrows. "So what now?"

Luke laced his fingers and lowered his arms. He smiled and said, "We swim anyway."

My ears burned. "No way. We might get caught and my parents would _ kill me,  _ and-"

Luke kissed my forehead. "Shut up," he said when he pulled away.

My ears still burned, but for a different reason. "Okay, the worst-case scenario is…"

"Irrelevant," Reggie interrupted. "C'mon, Alex, live a little."

I grumbled, "Ironic you tell me to live when I'm about to kill y-"

Luke kissed us both to interrupt. "Boys, boys, let's not fight, you're both beautiful."

Reggie kissed him back. "I know."

I rolled my eyes despite the big grin on my face. Luke laced and lowered his hands again and I took an anxious step up. He lifted me over the fence and I climbed down slowly. Next was Reggie who used Luke's help to climb over the fence but then chose to drop down, much to my worry. Luke effortlessly scaled the fence and landed perfectly when he jumped from the top.

I threw my arms over my eyes. "You two are going to give me a stroke, I swear."

Luke looked at Reggie. "Hear that? We're worrying him."

Reggie faked concern and went in for a hug, which I dodged before kicking him in the butt. He fell forward into the pool and I crossed my arms. Luke raised an eyebrow. "Okay, that was hot. Let's go change."

_ Luke's PoV _

I'm not a dumbass, okay? I knew what my boyfriends were doing. They were doing some bet for my attention or some shit and I was doing my best to keep it close to even. It was funny to see them compete, though. They didn’t seem to be mad at each other or anything, so no harm done, right? Reggie, now dripping wet, followed us into the locker room. I kissed Reggie quickly and said, “You have to be careful with him, love. You know he’s full of surprises.”

I saw a wet napkin sticking out of his pocket. “What’s this, love?” I asked, pulling the napkin out.

Reggie shot his hands forward and crushed the napkin between them. “Nothing,” he said, then looked at Alex and mouthed something. I looked at Alex who hid something behind his back as my eyes fell on him. I smirked and started to lift my shirt off. I heard Alex make a deep noise from his throat before I stopped halfway through.

“So, Alex,” I started. “What was on the napkin?”

Alex’s face was red. “Nothing.” 

I started to lower my shirt. “Well, that’s a shame. Honestly, I’m not in the mood to swim, anymore.”

Alex thrust out the napkin. “Hey, wait, here.”

I smiled and kissed Alex. “Thanks, babe.”

Alex rolled his eyes as I read the paper. “‘Let’s make a bet…’ Oh my fucking God, you two,” I gasped in fake surprise. “Are you boys jealous of each other?”

Reggie blushed. “Not jealous, we just wanted to have a friendly competition.”

I smiled and kissed Reggie. When I pulled away, I said, “You’re both children, you know that?”

Alex wrapped his arms around me from behind. “You just tied the score.”

I leaned my head backward. “Then I guess you’ll have to share. Ready to swim?”

Reggie was already hopping out of his shoes. “Always.”

Alex blushed and turned away to change.

I smiled at my boyfriends.

“Dorks.”


	3. Comfort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex’s parents are homophobic and his boyfriends are there to comfort him. Pre-canon but still 1995.

_ Alex’s PoV _

I was cornered. My parents were screaming, but I could only register a few words at a time.

I tried to take deep breaths, but they were more heaves than breaths.

“...disgusting… failure of a son… freak…  _ faggot...” _

I tried to hold in my tears. I really really did. But once the first tear fell, I couldn’t stop. I gathered my thoughts enough to look around my room and look for a way out. I steeled my nerves and kicked forward, hitting my father in the stomach. I pulled my window curtains down and threw them over my mom's head. I ran to the kitchen and grabbed a garage door opener off of the counter, clicking it as I continued to run. I ran into the garage and heard my mom’s footsteps behind me. Through the tears, it was hard to make out where my bike was, leaned against the wall. I grabbed it and wiped my tears, putting up the kickstand just in time for my mom to burst through the door.

I ran the bike through the garage and jumped on as it started to roll faster downhill. I pedaled as fast as I could and didn’t stop until I got to the studio. I rode inside, my lungs burning. Luke and Reggie were making out on the couch but jumped apart when I fell off of my bike and skidded across the ground. I dragged myself to the trash can I threw up as I continued to cry.

Luke approached me slowly. “You okay, babe?”

I threw my scraped and bleeding arm backward and failed to conceal my sobbing. “No, please, don’t let me interrupt. No need to worry about mー  _ HUUUURGGEHH.” _

Reggie rested a hand on my back. “Allie, what’s wrong?”

As I finished throwing up, I ran to the opening of the garage and pulled down the door, ignoring my pounding headache. “Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Fuck!”

Reggie jumped in surprise. “Excuse me? Alex, you don’t seem like yourself.” He grabbed my hand and it shocked me enough for me to stop running around.

I could barely think real thoughts. “Uhー umー mom dadー told I gayー fuck.”

Reggie laced his free hand in my hair, which was comforting. “Lexie, I’m so sorry. Is there anything we can do for you?”

My head hurt from my crying. I still had fresh tears running down my face but I attempted a laugh. “Stop calling me ‘Lexie,’ for one.”

Luke hugged me from behind and rested his chin on my shoulder. “Alex, this is serious. I love jokes almost as much as I love you, but we really want to help you.” He kissed my cheek and Reggie kissed my forehead. 

Reggie twirled my hair. “I would’ve kissed you on the lips but…”

Luke kissed my shoulder. “I have a mint. But, love, is there any way we can help you?”

I shook my head. “I’ll just need to stay here for a while, if that’s okay, Luke. And if you guys don’t mind, can we cuddle for a while? And kiss? It makes me feel… safer.”

Luke threw a mint to Reggie who caught it, put it in my mouth, and said, “Of course we can do that. We love you. And if they try to come to get you, Lukey will kick their asses.”

Luke stuck his tongue out. “Always Reggie with the bad nicknames.”

Reggie pouted and I kissed his bottom lip. “I think it’s sweet.” 

Reggie smirked, then kissed me hard. I vaguely registered a “Dude, are you trying to eat him?” I smiled into the kiss, and pulled away, all of my blood rushing to my cheeks.

Reggie kissed my forehead. “Feel better?”

I wiped away my tears and ignored the unease still in my stomach. “A little. I love you guys so much.”

Luke spun me around and lifted me up, taking me by surprise. I wrapped my legs around his waist as he tried to engulf me too. I melted into the kiss as he carried me to the couch and laid me down. Reggie lifted my head so he could sit and Luke placed my feet on his lap. I laughed to myself.

“I have the best boyfriends ever.”


	4. Makeup

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex is really good at makeup but never utilizes his skills because of internalized homophobia. One day, Reggie gets hurt and asks Alex to make him completely emo to cover up his injuries. Alex is hesitant at first but quickly melts into it. 1994.

_ Reggie's PoV _

I guess it started when I was nine. 

My parents were fighting so I stayed with Luke for a few days. We were telling scary stories under his blanket with a flashlight and at some point I got scared and jumped off of the bed, dragging the blanket down with me. "Urgh!" I grunted. Luke jumped up and started to help me stand. 

"I’m sorry, Reggie!” he gasped. “I didn’t mean to! Here, since you’re scared, I’ll protect you.” He wrapped me in a big hug and picked up some rocks out of his fishbowl to “protect me.” I smiled and laughed, enjoying the rest of my time at Luke’s house.

I had a crush on Luke for six years after that. At first, I thought it was alterous attraction. Really really liking him  _ as a friend.  _ But no, it was something so much more. I confessed when we were thirteen and we dated for two years before deciding that we were better as friends. We formed Sunset Curve with Alex and Bobby the same year we got together. I really liked the feel of the eyeliner, it was like a diversion for all of my anxiety with my parents fighting. Wearing makeup, I wasn’t “Reggie, the emotionally unstable guy whose parents are fighting.” I was “Reggie, the badass bassist for Sunset Curve.”

That’s how we got here. I truly am a bisexual disaster.

_ Alex’s PoV _

Alright, time for my flashback. I was thirteen and Sunset Curve had played our first show. Reggie and I wore eyeliner and Luke and Bobby decided to focus on the clothing more than the cosmetics. I liked the feeling of eyeliner. It just felt… cool. I decided to go into my mom’s room and try every kind of makeup I could get my hands on. Eyeshadow, mascara, lipstick, foundation, you name it. My parents walked in.

The next day, I went to rehearsal with bruises up and down my body. Reggie and I had to physically restrain a thirteen-year-old Luke from going to fight my parents. Reggie stayed with me all night in the garage and made sure I was okay. Sometimes I would randomly start crying and he would comfort me. That’s when I knew that I loved him. He was dating Luke at the time, but it’s not like I can control my emotions.

I was waiting before a rehearsal in the garage three years later when Reggie approached me with his backpack on. He was holding his hands over his face.

“Guess who,” he sang, an odd quiver evident in his voice.

I pretended to think. “Bobby?”

Reggie laughed. “Close but no cigar.” He stopped laughing abruptly. “Alex, if I move my hands, you can’t freak out.”

I continued to play the drums softly. “I promise.”

Reggie moved his hands and I hit my drumsticks so hard that one of them snapped. His lip was busted and swollen, his nose was bleeding, he had a black eye, and several black and blue spots littered his neck and face. 

Reggie held his hands out before I could jump up. “They were fighting and I got in the middle, it’s my fault, don’t overreact.”

I growled in frustration and let loose a string of words that Reggie had only heard from me during anxiety attacks.

“That is such fucking bullshit!” I yelled. “How the fuck are you going to blame yourself when they were the ones fighting. If you truly believe that it’s your fault, then I hate to say it, but you are a fucking dumbass. I can’t believe that those  _ bitches  _ would do this to you.”

I stood up with my drumstick and a half and started toward the garage, so angry that I didn’t even register my feet touching the ground. It was as if I was floating.

Reggie jumped in front of me. “Alex, no,” he begged. “You’ll only make it worse. I just need a favor.”

I spoke through gritted teeth. “What.”

Reggie took a breath. “I have no problem wearing it, so could you clean this up and put some makeup on me so Luke and Bobby don’t worry? If I remember right, you’re good at it so can you please do me this solid?”

I took a step forward, though it was less determined. “N-no. Let me through, Reggie.” Reggie spread his arms and legs in a star shape to stop me from continuing. I whispered in his ear, darkly, “It is not your fault. You did not do this to yourself. I’m not a violent person, but I will hurt those dicks as badly as they hurt you.” Reggie flinched and I grabbed his chin to steady him. “Then I’ll hurt them worse.”

Reggie frowned. “I can’t let you do that, Alex. Why can’t you do my makeup? I brought some from home.” He pulled his backpack off of his shoulders and I saw the holy grail of cosmetics.

“I can’t, Reggie.”

“Why not?”  
“Because.”

“Because..?”

“Because I hate myself for being able to! I’m sorry, Reggie, but I don’t… I’m sorry.”

Reggie’s first instinct was to throw himself at me in a hug. “Alex, I am so sorry. I had no idea. Do you want me to try to do it myself?”

I sighed and pushed away the pit in my stomach. “No. I’ll do it. You just want a coverup for your bruises?”

Reggie laughed sheepishly and looked down. “Well, I was thinking that maybe full emo makeup? Eyeliner, black or purple lipstick. The whole thing. I don’t know, it seems fun. I liked it during our first concert, and it goes with the rockstar thing.”

I shrunk in on myself. “I don’t know. I don’t want to… I mean I… Reggie, can we sit and talk?”

Reggie grabbed my hands and helped me to the couch. “Why can’t you?” His eyes pierced mine and the words flowed out of me.

I said everything with few, if any, breaths. “Two years ago when my parents beat me for the first time, it was because I was wearing makeup. There was no room for anything like that in my house but you knew that. Reggie, I don’t want to be gay. I want my parents to love me and see me as a person andー”

I was interrupted when Reggie growled and punched the wall behind us. I jumped and grabbed his hand. “Are you an idiot?” I asked, worried.

Reggie’s eyes were beady as he glared at me. “Are you? Fuck your family. If they don’t love you, you shouldn’t love them. They haven’t earned it. Stop blaming yourself. Alex, I’m pissed off at them and I’m pissed off at you. You’re a hypocrite. You tell me it’s not my fault and then pull this  _ bullshit.  _ Do you understand where you’re wrong here?”

I nodded shamefully.

Reggie sighed and smiled at me. “But you’re still my best friend.” The word at the end there hurt but I let him continue. “Alex, there’s something I want to tell you. But can you please do my makeup first?”

I wiped away the tears in my eyes. “Yeah. Let me clean your injuries first.”

I took a water bottle off of the piano and poured it over Reggie’s bleeding hand, the same one he punched the wall with. He winced but I smirked. “I bet now you regret punching the wall like an idiot.” Reggie rolled his eyes and I grabbed some tissues to wipe away the blood on his face, then used the water to clean his blood-stained teeth as much as I could with what was on hand. 

I had finished the cleaning. I looked in Reggie’s makeup bag and grabbed the essentials to cover the bruises. Foundation and concealer. I blended it and took a breath, steeling myself. I grabbed the liquid eyeliner and held it toward Reggie. “Keep your eyes open,” I instructed. I applied it and added a wing on both eyes, not a smudge or line out of place. I flipped the eyeliner into the bag and grabbed purple lipstick. I put just a smudge on his lips and pursed my lips, signaling Reggie to mimic me. Reggie rubbed his lips together and I smiled, proud of the work so far. I grabbed Reggie’s palette and brush, working my hands seamlessly. I swept the brush over Reggie’s eyelids, wiping off the few stray marks I left.

I grabbed a mirror and showed Reggie. “What do you think?”

I call things as I see them. Reggie smiled and giggled like an idiot. He pulled me into a hug. “Thank you, I love it,” he mumbled.

I hugged him back. “I should be thanking you. I had a lot of fun. Now, what was that thing you wanted to tell me?”

Reggie pulled away and took a sudden interest in the couch cushions. “I might kind of sort of definitely like you as more than a friend?”

My jaw dropped and I said. “Iー uhー duhー”

Reggie looked up. “You like me too?”

I nodded quickly. “Mhm!”

Reggie continued. “Do you want to go out as boyfriends?”

“Yuh-huh!”

“Can… can I kiss you?”

“Please!”

Reggie crashed his lips into mine. The lipstick felt weird against my mouth but the fireworks in my head helped me ignore that. Reggie climbed onto my lap and kissed me harder until we felt someone throw themselves on the couch.

Luke smirked. “It’s about fucking time!”

Reggie jumped away in shock and I looked up to see Bobby pointedly looking away from us. Reggie and I blushed as Luke stood and walked to his guitar.

Luke pointed at Reggie. “Loving the makeup. Alex, you got a lot of lipstick on you, it’s not a bad look.”

I walked to my drumset embarrassedly and Reggie picked up his bass guitar. I grabbed a spare stick as Luke yelled behind himself, “Long Weekend!”

I yelled back, “Two, three, four!”

Through the whole rehearsal, I noticed Reggie looking at me and winking. I smiled to myself, impressed by my makeup skills.

At the end, Reggie swept me into a deep kiss and winked. “I’ve been wanting to do that for six months.”

I panted, “Then why would you stop?”


	5. Protection

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke’s at Alex’s house and Alex’s parents catch them cuddling. They’re prepared to hurt Alex when Luke steps in. 1994.

_Alex’s PoV_

“I love you,” I sighed as Luke ran his hands through my hair, my head resting on his stomach, his head on the armrest of my couch.

Luke leaned down and kissed my forehead. “I love you too, for the sixth time today.”

I blushed. “Well, it’s true. I can’t believe I have such an amazing boyfriend. I don’t deserve you, Luke.”

Luke frowned at me. “Love, you know I hate it when you say that.”

I looked up at him. “It’s true.”

He sat up and kept me seated on his lap, facing him. “Alex, you are sweet and smart, and sarcastic in the best way possible. Plus you’re really cute! It’s not a matter of who deserves who. It’s a matter of me loving you and you loving me. And I do love you.”

I nodded shallowly and leaned toward him. He met me in the middle with a kiss that I sighed and smiled into.

I pulled back once biology forced me to take a breath. “When are your parents supposed to be home?” he asked. 

“In about a week,” I responded. “So we have plenty of time. I was thinking we could invite Reggie over later.”

Luke kissed me softly in response and laid back down. I laid directly on top of him and we continued to kiss lazily as _Beetlejuice_ played on the TV.

Fun fact about Luke: he really likes sweets. Kissing him is like eating everything in a candy store, even first thing in the morning. 

Luke kept his hands in my hair the whole time, something I really liked. It made me feel more secure. And it was really cute.

When we pulled back, I heard the front door open.

_Okay, everybody panic._

_Luke’s PoV_

Alex jumped up for some reason that I wasn’t sure of until I saw his parents standing behind the couch looking down at us. I looked at Alex who held his hands out as if trying to reason without words. Tears had already sprung to his eyes. I decided not to get involved.

Alex’s dad pinched the bridge of his nose. “We came back early because your mother sprained her wrist.” Alex nodded fearfully and his dad continued. “We leave for two weeks and you decide to have a boy over. And not only a boy but a boyfriend, judging on what I just saw.”

Alex squeaked out, “I’m sorry!”

Alex’s mom began to talk at this point. “Alex, not only are you a fag, but you decide to bring another one over, let him on our couch, kiss him, and you don’t see anything wrong with that?”

_Stay calm, Luke. You can handle their words, stay calm for Alex._

Alex was nearly crying and his dad glared. “And now he’s crying. Hold your chin up and puff out your chest, or are you a little girl.”

Alex bit back quietly, “I can’t just turn it off.”

Alex’s dad grabbed him by the collar.

_Stay calm._

Through grit teeth, Alex’s dad said, “You better fucking learn.”

_Don’t get involved._

Alex’s mom sighed. “How many times are we going to have to teach you this lesson?”

_Stay seated, he has it handled._

Alex’s dad raised his fist.

_NO!_

I jumped up and pulled Alex away, stretching his shirt. Alex’s dad swung at empty air as Alex sobbed on the floor in a breakdown. He kept his head in his legs as I rubbed circles around his back and threaded my hands through his hair.

“Hey, it’s okay,” I whispered to him. “I’ll protect you, okay, Love?”

Alex’s dad growled at me and I growled right the fuck back.

His dad took a step forward and I spoke pointedly. “Stay the fuck away from him.”

Alex’s dad walked forward, focused on me. I kissed Alex’s temple softly before standing. Alex’s dad spoke, “What are you, stupid?”

I laughed cruelly. “Are you deaf? I said to stay. Away. From him.” I smiled sarcastically.

Alex’s dad grabbed me by my collar. “He has to learn how things are. I won’t have… _that_ in my house.”

I fake gasped. “You mean… _homosexuality?_ How absolutely _appalling._ Calm down, dick, he can’t control it. _”_

Alex’s dad punched me in my mouth which started bleeding immediately. Thinking on my feet, I spat blood in his face. He dropped me and I kicked him in his dick. I rammed my forehead into his nose, placed my heel behind his, and tripped him when he stumbled backward.

I stood over him, my bleeding down on him. “Learn to treat your son with some fucking respect.”

I walked to Alex and picked him up in bridal style. I knew his house was close enough to the garage to carry him on my back, although…

“Love?” I prodded.

“Yeah?”

“You think you can ride your bike to the garage? It’s five minutes.”

Alex set his feet on the ground and grunted in affirmation. He looked at my lip and flinched before getting on his bike and starting down his driveway. I followed after him, wiping my lip every once in a while.

We rode into the empty garage and Alex sat on the couch sadly. I sat next to him and leaned forward for a kiss. He kissed me slowly and I felt a tear fall on my cheek. At first, I thought Alex was crying before I realized that it was me. Alex was unhappy and it was my fault.

I pulled away and let myself cry. Alex started to panic. “Did I do something wrong? I’m sorry about your lip, I’ll get the first aid kit.”

I shook my head and sniffled. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Love. I’m just upset that I almost got you hurt.” 

“You also stopped me from getting hurt.”

“Yeah, but I should've been more careful. You're upset and it's on me."

_Bam!_

Alex stomped his foot and glared at me. "Dumbass. I thought they wouldn't be home for another few days at least. It's no one's fault, so _stop blaming yourself._ "

I nodded embarrassedly and grabbed Alex's hands, rubbing circles on the backs. "Do you feel better?" I asked.

Alex shrugged. "I'll live. Do you want to invite Reggie over? I'm sure he wants to hang out."

I kissed Alex. "I'd love to."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will feature Julie, I swear.


	6. Prom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke and Willie take their partners to prom. 2021 so Julie’s school is having prom in the spring.

_Julie’s PoV_

“Please please pleeaaseeee,” Alex and I begged.

Luke bent down to look at me eye-leveled and offered a sarcastic smile. “No.”

Alex frowned at Willie. He turned to Luke and asked, “Why not?”

Luke threw his arms around wildly. “We’re rockstars! We play proms, we don’t attend them.”

I threw my arms out to mock him. “We’re teenagers, we go to proms.”

Alex jumped on Willie’s back. “We have to go!” he exclaimed. 

Willie shrugged him off. “We could be skateboarding in the Grand Canyon and you want to go to prom?”

Alex looked up with pleading eyes. “Please?”

Willie groaned. “If Luke goes, I’ll go.”

Alex and I both looked at Luke. “Lukeeeee.”

Luke glared at Willie and yanked him away. I turned to Alex and hugged him tightly. “Alex, how can I ever repay you?”

Alex hugged me back. “You pay next time we go shopping. I’m tired of setting off the alarms every time I try to get clothes.”

“Bet.”

_Willie’s PoV (A/N: Trying all the new shit this chapter)_

Luke seemed ready to punch me. “I don’t want to go to prom!” he whined.

I smiled and ruffled his hair. “Do it for Alex and Julie? They really want to go.”

Luke pouted. “You owe me.”

I shot finger guns at him. “Will do, Rocky Road.”

Luke perked up. “Okay, you don’t owe me if you keep calling me that.”

“Deal.”

I walked over to Alex and kissed him quickly. “Just a second.”

Luke and I poofed to the store and got construction paper, some sharpies, and other things. I penciled in some words on a white piece of paper and left glue in their wake. Luke had bought candy shaped like microphones and left it over the glue. When we poofed back to the studio, Alex and Julie were playing Rock, Paper, Scissors, clearly bored.

Luke and I got down on one knee and unrolled our poster that read: “ _ALEX AND JULIE! GO TO PROM WITH US?”_

Alex squealed and Julie laughed. Alex nodded eagerly while Julie said “yes,” probably a hundred times. As Luke and I lowered the poster, Alex jumped on me in a big hug. I kissed him hard and he wrapped his arms around my neck.

Alex jumped up and gasped, “Holy crap, I have to get a tux!”

Three weeks later, Flynn opened the doors to the limousine. Alex and I stepped inside before Luke and Julie, followed by Reggie, who decided to go for the snacks. Julie buckled in while Luke stretched out across her lap. Alex leaned his head on my shoulder and I rested my head on his own in response. Reggie made mock kissy faces at us and I showed him my favorite finger.

I looked down at Alex and smiled. He looked at me and blushed. “What?” he asked.

I continued to smile at him. “You’re just really cute is all.”

Alex’s current shade of red spread through the rest of his face as he took a breath and grabbed my hands. “I love you, Willie,” he said for the first time.

On a whim, I kissed Alex as hard as I could without hurting him. Alex kissed and I felt him trace his tongue along my bottom lip, then my teeth. I pulled away for a breath and panted, “I love you too, Hotdog.”

_Julie’s PoV_

I hummed “Perfect Harmony” to Luke as he nearly drifted to sleep. I laced my hand with his. “Thank you for taking me to prom. It means a lot to me.”

“Mhm,” he hummed in response. “All of my awesomeness aside, I’m excited.”

I smiled. “So what I’m hearing is I’m always right.”

Luke opened his eyes just to roll them. “You’re right maybe sixty percent of the time”

“Hm, seventy-five.”

“Seventy.”

“Fine.”

We both laughed as we arrived at my school and Alex took Willie’s hand so they could phase through the limo. The driver opened the door so everyone else could step outside.

Reggie looked at Alex and stuck his tongue out. “Show-off.”

Alex grabbed Willie’s hand and Willie kissed his cheek. Luke grabbed my hand.

“Shall we?” he offered. I nodded and walked inside, preparing for whatever was awaiting me.

Nothing could’ve prepared me for what I saw. At least five fire safety laws were being broken based on the number of people and decorations inside. The lights were colorful and bright and for a second, I thought it was the rapture.

Reggie ran over to the snack bar, crying, “Food!” Luke and Willie escorted me and Alex to a table where I left my jacket and bag. Flynn manned the DJ booth while Alex and I nearly floated to the dance floor, Luke and Willie close behind.

Flynn winked at me and I didn’t understand why until slow music began to play. I shot a glare and turned to Luke who blushed. We started to dance together until he pulled back with a sheepish smile.

“This,” he said, “is one of the songs that they would play in class.”

I frowned from confusion rather than sadness. “Class?”

“I… took dancing lessons as a kid. Classical and ballet. It was my parents’ choice.”

I fought back a smile. “So, are you going to show me?”

Luke took a breath and immediately started to dance like the Nutcracker. His pirouette was flawless and I felt a small spike of envy that was overwhelmed by amusement. Alex and Willie howled with laughter somewhere to my left.

Once I couldn’t hold in my laughter any longer, I waved my hand in front of me. “Okay, stop! Stop!” I held my hands in front of me. Luke grabbed them, looking into my eyes the whole time.

“Okay, Jules,” he laughed. “Let’s see what you can do.”

_Willie’s PoV_

I swear to God I tried to hold in my laughter. It’s not that Julie’s dancing was bad or anything. Come on, though, just imagine all the lifers watching her, not knowing Luke was there. Funniest shit _ever._

Beside me, Alex giggled and twirled into my arms. I smirked. “Hey.”

“Hey.”

“You come here often?”

“It’s my first time.”

“Then may I have this dance?”

Alex stood spun out of my arms, continuing to hold my hands, and led me through the steps to decent ballet. Every time I stepped on his feet, he’d giggle and place a soft kiss on my lips. We continued to dance until I accidentally tripped him and we both tumbled to the ground. Knowing that no one could step on us, we decided to lay on the floor for a while, staring into each other’s eyes.

“I love you,” I said, nearly having to shout over the noise.”

“I love you too.” Alex cuddled into my chest and I kissed the top of his head before resting my chin on top.

“Want to find Reggie?” I asked.

“Not now. Just hold me. You feel good.” Alex wrapped his arms around me.

“I love you, Hotdog.”

“You just said that.”

“You said it first. I get a week to say it as much as I want.”

“You’re so lame.”

“Fine then, I’ll just stand up.”

I moved to get up and Alex’s grip tightened as he mumbled, “I love you too.”

Alex and I shared several kisses while the music started to speed up around us. I didn’t care though. I would’ve been happy to lay there with my boyfriend forever.

_Julie’s PoV_

When the music sped up, Luke and I slowly pulled apart. We smiled at one another until someone ran through him and the moment was broken.

I giggled and raised an eyebrow. “What does that feel like?”

Luke looked upward in thought. “It’s kind of like when you wear really tight rubber gloves and try to put up your finger.”

I laughed and started to dance to the music. The thing was that every time I moved, I did my best to go through him. Luke laughed and started to dance in an attempt to dodge me. I lined up the perfect spin to go spiraling through him when he decided to make himself solid enough for me to crash into him. He caught me in an embrace and I smiled.

“Loser,” I smirked.

“Thank you, Jules.” He sighed, squeezing me tighter.

“Of course.” I looked up at him and for the first time, he kissed me softly.

_Christ, what did I ever do to deserve him?_

I beamed brighter than I ever had before and kissed him back. Prom was perfect.


	7. Nightmares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After running away, Luke realizes that everything won’t magically be okay. 1994.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back on my pre-canon bullshit. They all have different ways to calm them down, so when Alex is a bit rough with Luke, it’s what helps him.

_ Luke’s PoV _

It’s not like I didn’t know I could never go back home. I just didn’t expect it to have such an… impact on me. Alex was staying in the garage for a week while his parents were out of town. Reggie didn’t want to feel left out and we were happy to let him join us. We had pulled out the bed and had some movie that Reggie liked playing on the TV. Our limbs were tangled, though it wasn’t uncomfortable. Every once in a while, I would simply kiss Reggie behind the ear or run my fingers through Alex’s hair as ways to say “I love you” without disrupting the movie. When the movie ended, we all cuddled together and lay on the bed, a mess of kisses, laughs, and sighs. I smiled to myself every once in a while, unbelieving that I had such amazing boyfriends.

I kissed Reggie’s nose as Alex bit my ear playfully. Reggie took it upon himself to slide his hands up my shirt before I grabbed his arms and kissed his forehead.

“Not tonight, babe,” I insisted. “I’m tired.” Alex placed one more chaste kiss on my shoulder before wrapping his arms around me from behind.

“Love you,” Alex and Reggie said in unison.

“I love you too, boys. Sleep well.” With that, I fell into darkness and slept.

_ “You need to get a real job,” my mom all but screamed at me. _

_ I growled and yelled back, “I do have a real job! And real passion! Why does it piss you off so much when I’m happy?” _

_ “Maybe because I don’t want my only son to be homeless when he graduates!” _

_ “Maybe you’re just jealous because I have a chance to be something great. Not someone stuck in a stupid fucking office job destined to die unsatisfied.” _

_ My mom pulled her hand back and slapped me across the face. Between both of us, I wasn’t sure who was more upset. I held my hand to my cheek and stomped away. _

_ “Luke, wait!” she cried. “Wait, I’m sorry, please, come back!” Through the blood in my ears, I couldn’t hear her. I  _ chose  _ not to. “Come back!” _

I woke up with my boyfriends wrapped around me. Hot tears ran down my face and I heard Alex’s stern voice in my ear.

“You’re okay,” he demanded. I tried to steel myself and nodded in resolution. “Breathe.” Alex took his breaths with me while Reggie hooked his chin on my shoulder and traced random shapes on my stomach.

“I’m okay,” I stated, trying to convince myself rather than them. “I’m okay.”

“We love you,” Reggie mumbled in my ear. “More than we could ever say.”

I smiled at the dorks beside me. “I love you two too. Reg, don’t laugh.”

Reggie raised his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay.”

I kissed his head and pulled Alex into a hug. “Thank you both so much.”

Alex hummed an “mhm” into my neck and held my hands. They both stayed beside me as I fell back asleep.

The next morning, Alex and Reggie were beside me kissing each other like they hadn’t eaten in weeks. Upon noticing that I was awake, they slid away from one another and I groaned.

“No, keep going. You two are hot,” I joked.

Alex sighed. “Luke.”

Reggie backed him up. “Please?”

I rolled back over. “There’s nothing to talk about, really.”

Heat in his voice, Alex said, “Why would you just lie to us? We promised we would always tell each other the truth.”

I blushed. “I mean… I don’t think it’s worth talking about it. You two have it worse.”

Reggie frowned, and as he wasn’t good with words, he rested his head on my stomach as Alex continued. “There are people who have it worse than us,” he insisted. “That doesn’t mean we can’t reach out for help when we need it.”

Hating Alex’s flawless logic, I gave in. “It was just about the night I ran away. Nothing that big. I don’t know why you’re making such a huge deal out of it.”

Reggie whined but otherwise said nothing.

Alex furrowed his eyebrows. “If the roles were reversed, you wouldn’t let up until we told you. Think that’s fair enough?”

I shifted my gaze to the wall behind him. “I mean, I  _ guess.” _

Alex continued. “Therefore, we should do the same because you’re our boyfriend and we care about you.”

I crossed my arms and sighed. “I just wish they were more supportive. I wish they… I wish they would take me back.”

Alex moved to my side and invited me to sit up beside him. I rested my head on my shoulder and tried to go back to sleep. Try to escape the conversation.

Alex kissed the top of my head and Reggie curled up, his head on my lap. Alex spoke, “We can’t make you talk more, but know that we’re here for you.”

I pretended to be sleeping and Alex wrapped his arm around me. I could hear Reggie talking to him.

“I hope he’s okay,” Reggie stated. “I really love him.”

Alex spoke back, some worry in his voice. “Me too. Wish he would open up more often. Just want to help him…”

“Hey, it’s not your fault. He just wants to put us first.”

“Still, I worry.”

Reggie nearly laughed. “The Sun will die before Luke gives up on us and before we give up on him. He’ll be okay because he has a wonderful boyfriend or two to help him out.”

To show my affection, I pretended to fall forward and onto Alex’s lap and lay my arm over Reggie. Alex started rubbing his hand down my arm.

Reggie giggled and Alex flicked the back of my head. He kissed my hair. “You aren’t sneaky. We love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Working on something big; the first AU. Enjoy these oneshots while you wait though.


	8. Bruises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reggie runs to his boyfriends after his parents fight. 1994.

_ Reggie’s PoV _

  
  


I ran as quickly as I could. I doubt my parents saw me leave but I didn’t want to risk anything. Running more than thinking, I found myself at the garage. I wiped my eyes, forcing a smile, knowing that Luke was inside. I walked in and Luke raised his head from his seat on the couch. He rested eyes on me, his brows furrowed with concern. “You okay, babe?”

I waved my hand dismissively. “I can’t come to see my boyfriend just because I feel like it?”

“Not when your eyes are red and puffy.”

A long silence.

“Luke…”

“Reggie.”

I shifted nervously on the balls of my feet and bit my lip. “It’s nothing,” I said.

Luke stood up, making his way to me. “What happened, babe?”

“It’s like I said. Nothing.”

Luke cupped my cheek and rubbed his thumbs in circles. “Want me to call Alex?”

“Yes, please.”

Luke dialed the landline that Alex was paying for himself in his room. Only we had the number. He kept me hugged tight to his side the whole time we waited and despite my pretending to be fine, I let myself rest my head on his shoulder, desperate for some comfort. 

Alex race walked into the garage after parking his bike in the back, immediately throwing himself at me and kissing my face wherever he could reach, which was just about everywhere.

“Hey, Reggie,” he whispered. “You okay?”

I stuttered, “I-I’m… I’m… I’m not. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” I broke down and started sobbing in Alex’s shoulder as Luke hugged me from behind and whispered soft reassurances in my ear.

“I love you,” he would whisper. Then he’d kiss my cheek and move to the next thing he could think of. “It’s not your fault.” A kiss. “You’re wonderful.” A kiss. “We’re here for you.” A kiss. Alex rubbed circles on my hip with his thumb and said nothing.

After a while, Alex and Luke pulled away and Luke noticed something on the back of my neck.

“Love, did you give him a hickey?” he asked, concern seeping into his joking tone.

Alex frowned. “Not… not there. One on his hip, one on his chest, but Reggie, how did that get there?”

I put my hand on the back of my neck. “Uh, what get where?”

Alex kissed my forehead. “Want me to guess? I normally wouldn’t make you tell us anything but this is a real problem.”

“‘S fine,” I mumbled.

Luke unwrapped his arms from around my waist. “No, it’s not, babe. Tell us everything, please.”

Damn those eyes.

“They were fighting about something dumb. The bills I think, but I couldn’t handle it. I started crying, and my dad called me a pussy then he… he made me ‘fight for my manhood’ then he…” I lifted up my shirt and Alex gasped. Bruises covered my entire torso, including the places Alex had given me hickies. That seemed to piss him off.

“They hit him  _ everywhere.  _ Even the places I had… y’know. Those were there to remind him how much he means to us and they  _ ruined it.  _ I can’t stand their asses andー”

“STOP!”

I jumped at the sound of my own voice and suddenly wished the ground would swallow me. I reverted back to whispering. “I just… don’t like it when you yell.”

Alex reached for my hand and I took his. “I’m sorry,” he said.

“It’s okay,” I responded.

Just then, Luke grabbed Alex’s hoodie and pulled him to the side, leaving me alone while they talked. There were times their voices would rise in volume and I’d flinch. After about five minutes of this, I started to get scared.

“Are you guys fighting?” I asked.

They both jumped apart and walked toward me slowly. Luke spoke. “Just a little. Nothing super bad. I just think we should go teach them to show you some respect and Alex disagrees.”

Alex scoffed. “Again, we can’t beat up his parents.”

I frowned. “I don’t want you to fight them. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Luke’s eyebrows creased. “Are you sure? They should be taught a lesson.”

I shook my head. “I’m sure. I just want to be here with you guys for a while.”

Alex reached a hand toward me before stopping himself. “Can we hug you again?”

I nodded and Alex’s arms were immediately around my waist, lifting me. I wrapped my legs around him as he kissed me softly and Luke started to nibble the back of my neck.

They kept me  _ distracted  _ all night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I had quite literally no other way to end this one. I'm not writing smut but I mean, your imagination is your own, I guess.


	9. ATLA AU Part 1: Set Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short story where the JATP characters are different types of benders. They have to save all 4 of the original benders and try not to lose their minds with emotional worries.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long notes ahead  
> -  
> While Alex has the most subending aside from Julie, they’re all equal in power and skill. Only in the Avatar State is anyone (Julie) unequal. Also, Bobby is old but the Phantoms are 17 like in the series, so he’s still Carrie’s dad. He’s still a little bitch though, he beat up Alex and Luke once when they were cuddling at Carrie’s house (When she was Julie’s friend). Trust me, it's important later.
> 
> Main characters and their (sub)bending:
> 
> Alex=Water; Plantbending; healing; bloodbending; spiritbending  
> Julie=Avatar; plantbending; lightning; spirit projection; lavabending  
> Luke=Fire; lightning  
> Reggie=Air; spirit projection; spirit sensing outside of the spirit world  
> Flynn=Nonbender/Chi blocker  
> Willie=Earth; lavabending
> 
> Antagonists and their bending:
> 
> Carrie=Fire; lightning  
> Caleb=Water; spiritbending; bloodbending  
> Bobby=Earth; metalbending  
> Alex’s Parents: Nonbenders  
> Reggie’s parents: Air; spirit sensing  
> -  
> Pairings: Flynn/Julie; Alex/Willie; Alex/Reggie/Luke; Luke/Julie (Yeah, it’s gonna get fluffy and complicated)

_ Reggie’s PoV _

An ice spike flew past my face as Julie threw her hand forward. I summoned a wide blast of air that she managed to dodge and return. Stomping her foot, she rippled the ground as if it were a lake, causing me to fall forward and on my stomach. She shot herself forward with two jets of fire from her feet that I was only able to dodge by holding my right hand outward and using air to push myself to the side. She flew past me, close enough for me to feel the heat on my face. I spun on my back, sending air in every direction (A/N: ATLA fans, yes this move was used in the final Agni Kai, I’m gonna make as many references as possible). Julie was tossed backward and hit the ground hard with a grunt. I stood up quickly and turned around to see several blades of grass growing and flying toward me.

_ Shit. _

The grass tied itself around my wrists and ankles, binding me to the ground and signaling the end of the sparring session. I ripped the grass up and pulled Julie into a side hug.

“You’re getting better at plantbending,” I praised. “Alex must be helping you a lot.”

Julie scoffed jokingly, “When he isn’t making out with you, Luke, or Willie.”

I stuck my tongue out at her and pulled away to let Julie catch up with her girlfriend. I danced over to Luke and Alex. Willie had to take care of a few things in Ba Sing Se, the city where he was crowned prince. I ruffled Alex’s hair with a gust of wind, earning myself a glare and a spout of water in my face. I jumped on Alex, attempting to pin him and he wrestled me back just as hard. I created a small mattress of air to levitate us just a little off of the ground where we continued to “fight.” Alex’s water pouch opened and a stream of water wrapped around me.

_ Again? _

The water turned to ice and we both fell onto Luke’s lap. He grunted, heating his lap to melt the ice, then to dry me off. I lay my head on Luke’s chest, his arms around me, and attempted to soak up the sunlight. We sat on the beach for what felt like hours. At some point, Julie and Flynn came and sat with us.

Alex’s head in my arms, he sighed contently. “This is nice. Normally Carrie or someone would come bursting through those bushes and cause a fight or something.”

As if on cue, the bush rustled and everyone jumped up, tense. Julie’s eyes glew while Luke and Alex stood behind her. Luke’s arms had caught fire and strands of water surrounded Alex. The wind speed around me increased as Flynn took a fighting stance. As we all sucked in a collective breath, Willie popped out of the bushes.

_ Alex’s PoV _

Twigs in his hair and clothes torn, I launched myself at Willie, threatening to crush his ribs.

“Willie!” I screamed, definitely smothering him as I kept my arms wrapped tight around him.

Willie laughed and squeezed me back. “Hey there, waterboy. I missed you.”

I giggled and kissed his chest. “I missed you too. Why’re you so disheveled?”

Willie pried me off of him and kissed my forehead. “Unfortunately, there’s a quest and it’s not an easy one. It might determine the fate of all bending.”

Julie’s eyes were no longer glowing, but she still stiffened.

Willie continued. “You guys might want to sit down.” Per his request, we sat on tree stumps and the ground. Willie explained, “You guys know how Bobby is the king of Omashu? And how Caleb is Chief of the Southern Water Tribe?” We all nodded to show our understanding. “Well, they’re rallying some people and they’re going to wipe out the original four benders. The Moon and Ocean Spirits, the sky bison, the dragons, and the badgermoles. Caleb also corrupted all of the Lion Turtles he could find so they’ll keep their bending.”

Reggie shivered. “The spirits do feel… angry. Scared. Helpless.”

Julie cut in. “Why would that get rid of all bending?”

I bit my lip. “Well, without the Moon Spirit, there’s no waterbending. Without the dragons, firebending will almost definitely be used incorrectly, for air, it’s the lion turtles rather than the sky bison because air is spiritual, and as for earth, they aren’t directly in danger but then we’re out of balance.” Everyone looked at me. “Or something.”

Luke stood up. “Then we should go kick their asses!”

I glared at Luke sharply. “Let’s see here. You could probably beat Carrie in an Agni Kai, Caleb can destroy your soul, you can’t bend metal, so that’s Bobby. Now, what exactly do you suggest?”

Luke sat down grumbling. “I said ‘we.’”

Willie reached out with grabby hands toward me. I sat in his lap while he spoke. “Who knows who else we’ll have to fight? It’s not for the faint of heart. Are you guys sure you’re ready for this?”

Flynn stood and dusted herself off. “I can’t imagine we have a choice.”

The rest of us stood and prepared ourselves. I gathered some fish and water to eat, Luke got us some firewood, Reggie got some games to play and everyone helped when they were asked. We were ready to go in about an hour.

Julie shouldered her backpack. “All right, then. Let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was mostly to set up dynamics and whatnot so stay tuned! Oneshots are on hold while I crank this out. Also, I've kind of decided that Alex is as tall as all of his boyfriends for fluff reasons.


	10. ATLA AU Part 2: Dragons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this was going to be better but I felt bad for keeping y'all waiting and it was already getting pretty long so yeah. Enjoy part 2!

_ Flynn’s PoV _

We walked along a beach in the Fire Nation. About twenty minutes in, Julie got tired so she slept on Luke’s back. We walked next to each other.

Luke smiled down at me. “Hey, we don’t talk much.”

I shrugged in response. Luke cleared his throat, continuing. “I know we aren’t super close but you’re part of this team and I’d like to get to know you more.”

Let me be very clear. I don’t hate Luke or have anything against him. I’m not jealous of him dating Julie, but aside from her, what did we have in common? I shrugged again and said, “I mean, okay, I guess.”

His lips pursed, Luke nodded. “So, you can stop bending. That must be cool.”

I lit up. “Oh, totally. I temporarily block off the chi paths in a bender’s body so they lose their powers for about ten minutes. I can also knock people out and did I mention that I also know how to use a sword?”

Luke’s expression softened. “Dude, nice! You should totally teach me to use a sword sometime.”

I laughed and felt the awkwardness peel away. “Deal. Let’s play a game.”

Luke raised an eyebrow. “What game?”

Smirking, I answered, “Twenty Questions.”

_ Willie’s PoV _

Behind me, I could hear Flynn and Luke playing their game. Alex and Reggie were on either side of me, talking around me.

“Alex, are turtle ducks birds or reptiles?” asked Reggie.

“Birds. They don’t have scales,” answered Alex.

I smiled to myself and idly played with rocks. As smart as Alex liked to act, he was just as bad as Luke and Reggie. And that’s a good thing, trust me. Every once in a while, I would turn a rock into lava and back again as a way to keep myself entertained. We definitely could’ve been moving faster if it weren’t for Flynn and Julie. Flynn didn’t have any way to increase her movement speed and Julie was sleeping, so here we were, walking and wasting time.

I ran my hands through my hair and groaned. “Fuck, I’m pissing myself off.”

Reggie hugged me and Alex stood in front of me so I would be forced to talk. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

I chewed my lip. “Just accidentally let my thoughts wander. Kind of stressed.”

Alex nodded in understanding and placed a soft kiss on my lips. Reggie kissed my forehead in a platonic sense. I hugged Reggie back. “Thanks, Reg. It’s just y’know, we could be moving so much faster.”

Alex tilted his head in indifference. “Maybe so, but remember: we’re teenagers. Yes, one of us happens to be the Avatar, one of us the prince of the largest kingdom in the world. But teenagers, nonetheless. Sometimes we want to take in the view. We can find the dragons easily enough, probably, we’re already in the fire nation. We’ll be okay.”

I sighed. “How do you always know what to say?”

Laughing bitterly, Alex replied, “I have anxiety and shit parents, I learned what to say fast.” I kissed his forehead as Flynn and Luke caught up to us. Julie was starting to stir on Luke’s back. Alex looked around. “Reggie, you should project and find the dragons. Luke, help him out, he can probably trace them with your spiritual signature. We only need one male and one female. Willie put up a tent, and Flynn and I can keep watch. Julie can sleep inside, she trained almost all night.”

Flynn crossed her arms. “All right, and if Caleb comes and starts stealing souls?”

Alex looked up in thought, then replied, “I can probably hold him off. I can spiritbend too, so I can probably keep him from destroying anyone’s soul. Or keep him distracted enough for you to take his bending and knock him out.”

Flynn nodded and waved her hand. Luke and Reggie sat down with Julie beside them and I raised my hands to form a tent over them both. I closed it up and sat on top. It was time to wait.

_ Luke’s PoV _

Reggie grabbed my hands and shut his eyes. Spiritual matters were the only times he calmed down and focused. He chewed his lip and said, “Try to see through my eyes. I want you to be there with me and since we’re using your spirit, I think we can do it.”

I closed my eyes and felt something prodding in my stomach. Not something bad. Something that just felt…  _ Reggie.  _ I relaxed enough to let it in, and suddenly I was flying.

_ I soared over the clearing in which we were staying, just close enough to the ocean for Alex and Julie to get to it if they needed. _

_ I could hear Reggie’s voice in my head. “This is new. I’m projecting through your spirit so you’re going to have to fly around while I talk to you. Let me know what you see so we can get there in the physical world.” _

_ I spoke aloud, “Will do, babe.” _

_ I tried to summon a ball of fire to find I couldn’t. However, I felt a pull in my chest. Toward where a fire could be. I tried for another ball of fire and the tug yanked harder at my navel. I decided to fly toward it as quickly as I could. Reggie spoke in my mind, “Slow down, I need to be able to describe it to everyone later.” _

_ I slowed my flying, hoping I could still get there before Caleb, Bobby, Carrie, or anyone else they had recruited. I knew Reggie couldn’t talk or move in the physical world and only Julie could see our spirits. The issue was, she was probably still sleeping and we were too far away to talk to her. I didn’t know how long I had been flying for but it felt too long for me to be comfortable. _

_ “Babe, are you getting anything?” I asked. _

_ “Yeah, keep flying toward the mountains. And you can hurry.” _

_ As soon as he said that, I was blasting toward the mountains near Shu Jing. I let the pull turn into a fishing line that hurled me through the fire nation until I was at a mountaintop staring at three large colorful creatures, all three of them circling me. I heard their voices next to Reggie’s but I couldn’t pin a location. _

_ “Why have you come here, human?” The red dragon flew through me. _

_ “We have been undisturbed for years, and you come to us.” The blue dragon passed by me, but I still couldn’t tell which dragon had spoken. _

_ “Hey, Lukey.” Reggie’s familiar voice spoke in my head. “You can come back now, it’s okay. I can feel you’re scared. That’s okay.” _

_ The largest dragon, a winged purple beast rose above me until I wasn’t a quarter its size. “If you want an audience with us,” it said, its voice the deepest and most focused, “you must explain yourself. Now.” _

_ I said, “Sorry Reggie.” _

_ The purple dragon became a blur until golden eyes were directly in front of me. “Speak.” _

_ I spoke rapidly. “An evil waterbender, an earthbender, another firebender, and spirits know who else are on a mission to kill all of the four original benders, and we think they’re starting with you. At the very least my friends and I are, considering the first Avatar was a firebender and such. We think if we hurry, we can save at least you three.” _

_ The red and blue dragons had moved to a stationary position on either side of their superior. “What makes you so sure?” _

_ I tried not to lose my temper when I replied, “One of my friends is the prince of Ba Sing Se, I’m a firebender, my boyfriend is an airbender helping me project my spirit, and my girlfriend is the Avatar. Satisfied?” _

_ The purple dragon growled. “You’re arrogant. You’re short-tempered and flippant and have hardly earned our congregation. My blood ran cold as the dragon continued. “Channeled correctly, you could make an exceptional firebender. Come find us. Come save us, and we’ll have a gift for you. Hurry, human.” _

_ I shot myself miles across the fire nation back to my body and shocked my body awake when my spirit landed. _

Reggie jumped up too and we both bumped our heads on the roof of the tent. Julie started to wake up and when we told her what happened, she lowered the tent. As her eyes adjusted to the sunlight, I told Willie what we’d learned. He looked to Flynn and bit his lip.

He walked to her and started asking her questions while I approached Julie.

“Hey,” I said. “How do you feel?”

“Tired,” she whined. “You?”

I laughed, “Stressed. I had to stare down three dragons and my heart's still pounding.” She hugged me around my neck before sliding down so her hands remained on my shoulders. She started to dance slowly despite the lack of music. I smiled and rolled my eyes, swaying with her. My stress alleviated rapidly and when she pulled away, she asked, “Better?”

I kissed her quickly. “Much.”

We walked toward the others who were huddled up and Flynn spoke. “Okay, we found a way to help Flynn move faster. Reggie’s given her his glider and they’re going to be tethered. He’ll ride his air scooter and that should lift her in the air.

Alex chewed his lip. “Is that safe?”

Willie shook his head. “We don’t have much of a choice, do we?”

I kissed Alex behind his ear. “Hey, love, we’ll do our best to keep her safe.”

Alex looked to Flynn who nodded in consent and started to press herself into Reggie’s glider. Despite Willie’s promise, Alex manipulated a few tree roots to fully fasten Flynn.

Without another word, we were off. Willie shifting the earth under him for propulsion, Julie doing the same. Reggie moved slightly ahead on his air scooter and Flynn flew just high enough to not scrape her whole body. I blasted jets of flame from my feet and hands and aways to my right, I could see Alex in a water spout, moving just slower than I was. When the mountain was in sight, he formed a plank of ice with wheels on the bottom he had invented (A/N: Skateboard) that Willie also liked to make use of. He used waterbending to attach his feet, then shoot it forward. When we reached the mountain, Willie pulled out a platform for us to stand on top of, and with Julie’s help, we rose. I bit at the inside of my lip. Something didn’t feel right.

I turned and blocked a blast of fire not a moment too soon. Everyone assumed a fighting stance as a hole opened next to us. I looked at Willie, then Julie. Both of them shook their heads as six metal clamps flew at us and pushed us into the hole which immediately closed with a  _ clang  _ where there should’ve been a  _ woosh.  _ Julie and I lit fire in our palms, revealing a metal sheet in place of the stone that usually encased the mountain. Turning back around, we noticed a tunnel leading further into the mountain. Was it a trap? Probably. Did we have the time or choice to not go down the tunnel? Absolutely not. Rolling my shoulders back, I took a step, into the tunnel, hearing six pairs of footsteps behind me.

_ Six? _

I turned just in time for a bag to be shoved over my head while something hit me hard in the side of the head.

_ Julie’s PoV _

We woke up somewhere dark. I tried to move my arms and legs to find they were tied. A metal strap was placed over my mouth. It was dark so I had to listen to my surroundings. I heard muffled shouting; probably Flynn. The repeating sound of a chair slamming to the ground; Luke or Willie. No, Willie would be calm and try to see a way out. So definitely Luke. The wind swirled around me, meaning Reggie was awake. That left Alex. I didn’t hear heavy breathing or any signs of panic so he was either still unconscious or being really quiet. It was then I remembered that Alex had never taught me ice breath, which would’ve come in handy with the metal. Lavabending would kill us all, and spiritual projection would do noth…

I closed my eyes and focused. Tuning out my struggling friends, I let myself lift, and soon I was flying. I floated to where the wind felt strongest and said, “Hey, it’s Julie. Stay in your body.” The wind slowed down and I continued. “Is there metal over your mouth?”

Reggie hummed a no.

“Is it something soft? Maybe like a rag?”

“Mmm… mhm!”

“Okay, I want you to talk as much as you can until it falls off. Try to use airbending and force it out. I’ll be right back.”

I flew through the mountain until I had reached the top. There were three dragons, but they paid me no mind. Looking down, Bobby and Carrie were already in sight. I dived through the mountain once more and yelled, “Reggie, is your mouth free?”

To my left, I heard a “Yeah, over here! Guys, it’s Julie!”

I heard more mumbles. “Ask Alex if he’s awake,” I told Reggie.

Reggie called to Alex, “‘Lexi, are you up?”

A muffled hum echoed through the cave.

I had Reggie relay my instructions until Alex’s mouth was also free. He told Reggie that his chair was made of wood rather than metal.

I looked up to think quickly. “Okay, Reg. Use your breath of wind and throw Alex against the wall. It should break the chair.”

Reggie said, “Sorry, Lexi” before he took a deep breath and sent Alex flying against the cave wall. I heard Alex’s chair shatter as Alex coughed and groaned.

“I don’t have any water to heal myself with. I want extra cuddles from you later,” Alex insisted.

I ignored him, instead turning to where I heard metal clang when Reggie pushed himself backward as well.

“Okay, Reggie, almost done,” I said. “Tell Alex to get up and find me or Luke. Have him use his ice breath to break the metal on Luke’s mouth so Luke can burn the ropes off of everyone.”

After Reggie sent the message, Alex seemingly hopped over to the sound of a hobbling chair, sitting on Luke’s lap for balance. There were sounds of freezing, then shattering before Luke’s voice rang out through the cave.

“Thanks, Jules!” He exclaimed, his voice completely missing me.

Feeling like my work was done, I settled back into my body and waited for Luke to free himself, then the rest of us by biting the rope and exhaling a small puff of fire.

Willie turned the metal door into lava and then to stone.

We were all free and moving up the mountain as fast as possible. Alex paced, even on our short platform. Reggie was leading him through breaths. We made it to the top of the mountain quickly and not a moment too soon. Carrie went to kneel before the dragons as I ran toward them, my chest heaving. I created a ball of fire that landed just between her and the three dragons before me. Carrie jumped back and I tackled her to the ground.

We wrestled before the towering beasts until a claw scraped over my back. I screamed loud enough that Carrie covered her ears. I jumped off of her and stood to face the purple dragon. It’s deep voice rang through the mountaintop.

“Avatar. You may be powerful but you are not above manners. She claims she wants to help us. She claims you’ve gone dark.” The dragon’s wings twitched behind it.

I bowed despite the pain in my back. “She’s lying. She and her father…”

“...want to seize control over the original four benders, we’ve heard. Prove to us that she’s lying.”

I sat back and almost immediately hollered, the pain in my back flaring up again. “Uh… okay.”

I shut my eyes and let power overtake me. Just one Avatar back. I floated upward in an air spiral that lifted me to just under halfway up the dragon’s body. I landed gently and looked upward. The dragons looked at one another and snorted.

“What does this prove?” asked the red one.

I did my best to explain. “Well, the Avatar is the bridge between the spirits and humans, and also airbending is spiritual and spirits are generally good so I am too…?”

Just then, heat seared through my back. I turned to see Carrie’s hands flaming, preparing another blast at my open cut.

_ Luke’s PoV _

I dodged a small steel card and sent a blast of flame at Bobby.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” I all but yelled. “Why do you hate me and my friends so much? Why can’t you stand it when people are happy?”

I dodged several pillars of stone as Bobby replied, “You were corrupting my daughter. She told me she might like girls and I knew it was you and the blonde one. You’re a bad influence.”

I kept dancing around the rock posts. “Oh, fuck off, she can’t control it. You’re the one corrupting her. I’m not ashamed of who I am, and Carrie shouldn’t be either.”

“Because you’re just the perfect role-model, right? You started ditching school to go play hero with Julie. Emily was right. You are a failure.” 

My steps faltered and a rock column hit me in my diaphragm, knocking the air out of me. I wheezed and threw fire in circles around me to keep Bobby at bay. As firebending comes from the breath, they were hardly impressive. I barely managed to roll away from a flying boulder.

My mom would never say that. Right? She wasn’t happy that I was teaching the Avatar instead of going to school, and she had some questions about my sexuality but… no she wouldn’t… she wouldn’t… 

No. She wouldn’t.

I struggled to my feet and kicked fire toward Bobby. No matter how much it hurt, I was unrelenting, waiting for the perfect moment to land a final blow. When Bobby covered himself in metal, I smirked. I traced arcs in the air and shot a lightning bolt directly into Bobby’s hip. He sizzled and seized but there wouldn’t be any permanent damage. Probably. I smiled to myself, chest heaving. I saw Julie’s hair blowing in the wind but before she could fully engage in her fight with Carrie, a large, scaly leg divided them. I ran to Julie’s side as the purple dragon’s voice and body loomed over us.

“We know who was lying now. Thank you, Avatar, for your assistance. And you, firebender. As for you…”

The dragon swatted Carrie like a bug and she hurtled over the side of the mountain and into the ocean.

I bowed and did my best to keep my cool regarding the gash on Julie’s back.

“You both have shown great skill and worth. For you, Avatar, we have a necklace. Attached to it is a bell. When you need us, ring the bell. We’ll hear and we’ll come. Once.”

Julie bowed her head. “Thank you. I appreciate it greatly.”

The dragons snorted and the blue one spoke for the first time since our first meeting. “As for you, firebender, we offer you the firebending knowledge of the dragons. It’s on you to figure out what that means and how to use it. We trust you’ll be wise.” The dragons all exhaled and I was suddenly surrounded by fire of all colors.

My bow steepened. “Thank you all. Please stay safe and if an aged waterbender with brown hair approaches, don’t hesitate to protect yourselves.”

The blue dragon laughed. “He speaks as though he can assign us tasks. I almost admire him. Thank you all for your protection. Now leave this place. You have more to save than us.”

Upon reaching the bottom of the mountain, I studied my hands. When I aimed at a tree, a brilliant red flame spewed forth, the width and height of a small house. The tree and others surrounding it were reduced to ash.

A voice echoed from the top of the mountain. “Be responsible!”

I smiled and threw my arms around Julie, pressing a kiss to her temple. “Okay, this is awesome but we have work to do. I suggest we get moving. Willie?”

Willie smiled. “Next is Sky Bison. We only  _ need  _ to save one male and one female but the more the merrier, right?”

Alex grabbed his hand while Flynn wrapped me and Julie in a hug. “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back to this episode of "I was supposed to be doing homework." Hopefully, part 3 comes faster.  
> -  
> Caleb may be gone but he's not forgotten. What'll face them when they try to save the bison? Stay tuned to find out!


	11. ATLA AU Part 3: Sky Bison

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lord did I absolutely fuck up the atla lore and mechanics but shush. It's my AU in my fic and I do as I please. Much love reading!

_ Reggie’s PoV _

The closest air temple would be the one in the east. We’d have to travel over water, but with Alex and Julie, that was never a problem. I kept an eye on Luke while he experimented with his newfound power. I noted that the red flame took focus and his normal bending seemed more effortless. Whenever he used the more powerful fire, his eyes would turn gold until he used his normal firepower.

Luke shot a large blast of red fire at another cluster of trees, leaving them as nothing but grey flakes where wood should be. He held his hand up again and Alex used some of his own water to cover Luke’s arm.

Nearly glaring, Alex said, “That’s enough, Luke. We don’t want everyone to know where we are. Put away the dragonflame and let’s just try to move quickly.”

I bounded to Alex and grabbed his hand, causing the water to splash to the ground as Willie held his other one. “Oo, ‘Lexi,” I beamed. “‘Dragonflame,’ I like it.”

Despite being free from the water, Luke lowered his arm and grabbed Julie’s hand, his eyes still gold. I raised Alex’s knuckles to my lips and Willie mimicked me. We smiled at each other and he leaned to press a kiss to my cheek.

I blushed the same color as Luke’s dragonflame. “W-was thatーI-I-I mean, I didn’t hate it but I don’t think I like you likeー”

Willie laughed and ruffled my hair. “No, it wasn’t romantic. I just like to platonically kiss my friends on the cheek. I just thought, ‘Hey, Reggie’s cute and I like him a lot. I should kiss him.’ So I did.” He pulled Alex’s chin toward him and we stopped walking while they made out. It wasn’t difficult to hear grunting and sighs between them. “Those kisses,” he panted, “Are reserved for my favorite.”

I smiled goofily and kissed Willie’s cheek. “Why, thank you.”

Alex swung our arms. “You’re both, dorks. Though, Willie, if you want to kiss Reggie on the lips platonically, that’s fine.”

Willie kissed Alex again, much faster this time. “No, thank you. Mouth kisses are for my lovely boyfriend.”

Alex tilted over and kissed me. “I love you both.” He smiled proudly.

We leaned in and kissed his cheeks. “We love you too.”

Flynn yelled behind us. “Kind of gay!”

We all laughed and didn’t miss Julie quickly pecking Flynn’s lips.

Luke fake pouted. “I want kisses.” Alex, Julie, and I all surged toward him, kissing his face.

I flattened my lips in Luke’s hair. “Better?”

Smile reaching his ears, Luke nodded and we picked up speed to the ocean. It was in sight quickly and Alex worked with Julie to make a boat of ice. We climbed inside when it was finished and soon we were off to the air temple.

Getting inside of an air temple was nearly impossible for those who weren’t airbenders. Even airbenders normally needed Sky Bison, but mine wasn’t at the Western Temple. That was the temple for the girls. I was from the North. Soon the temple was in sight and we stepped onto the shore.

The air was crisp. The place felt spiritual and it was. Normally we’d have to scale the mountain but I knew another way inside. I led my friends behind a cluster of bushes and other flora which revealed a staircase on the other side, luckily empty.

Rushing everyone inside, I kept a lookout for Caleb. If my math was right, we’d be there before him or any of his soldiers.

…

I fucking suck at math.

As soon as we had reached the surface of the temple, we were greeted with a pissed waterbender and several air nomads with their eyes glazed over. Caleb crossed his arms, the fire in his eyes betraying his calm smirk.

“Reginald. And company,” he mused. “If you’re looking for the bison, they’re long gone. I do know where they might be, however.”

Luke’s eyes were back to normal. That gave us one advantage. He snarled, “Where would they be, then?”

Caleb shrugged. “I can’t tell you that. That is… unless you pass my tests.”

I stroked my chin in false consideration. “Or we could take you down and go find some others ourselves.”

Caleb faked a pout. “Aw, Reginald. Where’s the fun in that? All you each have to do is answer a question.”

Glowering, I said, “Is that all?”

Caleb nodded and while he was an evil person, he never lied on matters such as these. I still shook my head.

I did my best to look intimidating. “You have to answer one question for us first.”

“What did you do to the air nomads?” Luke asked, not waiting for Caleb’s response.

Caleb laughed excitedly. “I broke their spirits. They belong to me. Broken but not destroyed which means I can fix them just as easily.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Alex’s water pouch opened, already rippling. I just needed to keep Caleb distracted enough for Alex to use his own spiritbending and restore the souls of the air nomads.

I stepped closer to Caleb. Flynn stepped up beside me. We nodded to Caleb who snapped his fingers. Two air nomads approached us from behind and seized our arms. Caleb waved as he walked away, the air nomads holding us, following. I turned and saw the air nomads wearing masks.

Five minutes passed before a sanctuary was in sight. Caleb looked at me.

“Open it,” he demanded. It took me a second to work out why. I stepped forward and blew open the doors. Caleb forced us inside right away and sat down. “Okay, Flynn. Reginald. Tell me. Why did you both leave home? I’ll be back in ten for your answers. Oh, and you two can have free will while you wait. Toodles.”

We sat in the dark and I immediately forced my spirit out of my body. I was supposed to be patient but ten minutes wouldn’t be nearly enough time to do it right. I flew straight to Julie.

“Jules!” I called.

Julie glanced at my spirit and nodded, doing her best to be discreet.

I started to explain, “Airbending comes from spirituality! Caleb broke their spirits so they have no bending. You can’t take them all but if you can separate them then maybe Caleb’s control will break and Alex can give them their bending back. I have to go now.”

I was back in my body less than a minute later. I knew my answer and I was sure Flynn knew hers. I scooted over to Flynn.

“They don't have bending. When Caleb gets back, chi-block him. Is there any way you can do it without him noticing?” I wasn’t sure she heard me until she replied.

“I’ll cause a scene and when he grabs me, I can probably sneak a few short and soft jabs.”

“How do we know he won’t just send these air nomads after us?”

“I’ll knock them out now.” I heard shuffling, then rustling, then Flynn sitting next to me again. “He can make them wake up but one of us should be able to get an answer out before they’re of any use.”

“So…”

“There’s time for me to chi block him enough to take his bending and give my answer before the air nomads are useful. His bending will be gone for five minutes top so you better have a plan.” I nodded.

Now to wait.

I couldn’t tell the time but it didn’t feel like it took Caleb too long to come back. He knocked. “Reginald, open the door. Now.”

I walked over to the sound of his voice and opened the door for him. He smiled cruelly and waltzed into the room.

He leaned against the wall and waved his hand. “You first, Flynn.”

Flynn lunged at Caleb and managed to hit one spot beneath his armpit. He grabbed her and I noticed her fingers dancing sloppily over Caleb’s pressure points. He threw her to the ground and glared. “Answer now, Flynnagin.”

Flynn was speedy with her answer. “Julie is my favorite person in the world and I’d do anything to help her and I keep in touch with my parents.”

Caleb nodded, content. “All right then. Get out of here and send… hmm… Willie. Send Willie back here.”

Flynn scurried away but not before glancing back at me and giving me a thumbs up.

“Now you, Reginald. And please, be sure to speak loud enough for the audience to hear you. Masks off, babes.”

The air nomads in front of me reached up, untying their masks, and letting them slip from their faces. I sucked in a breath.

“I left… I left… I left because…”

_ For them. _

“Mom. Dad. I left because you both treated me like shit! You were always fighting in front of me.  _ About me.  _ Parents fighting is normal. Fighting about, ‘why is he corrupted,’ ‘why is he so fucking stupid,’ ‘why is he broken.’ That’s not normal, assholes! I left because I love my boyfriends. I love Julie, Willie, and Flynn too.”

Caleb yelled, “Stop him!” as my parents’ arms began to twitch. I didn’t stop.

“I left because you hit me when you got mad because you knew you couldn’t hit each other. What kind of airbenders do that? What kind of  _ parents  _ do that?” My parents grabbed my wrists. “Don’t  _ fucking touch me.” _

A pair of metaphysical wings sprouted from my shoulders. For a moment, my parents stopped and their eyes seemed to go into focus. I bolted. I jumped on an air scooter, moving straight for the door. Just as I was about to leave, I stopped and turned backward.

“I hate you both. Fuck you.” I moved as quickly as I could after that, the wings seeming to increase my speed but not allowing me to actually fly. Caleb groaned in frustration and as soon as I could see my friends, lava was trailing me, keeping Caleb from following, and eventually reaching the patch of land where Alex was healing the last of the airbenders. They blinked as if they had just woken up from a nap.

I approached one of the older looking ones and bowed. “Do you know where theー”

A roar sounded from above and a herd of sky bison began to descend. We only needed two, a male and a female. There had to be at least thirty. I smiled and turned to Willie with puppy dog eyes. He rolled his own and stomped on the ground, shooting a pillar up and sending me flying onto the back of a bison. It turned its head backward and wailed. I waited for it to land before hopping off. The bison leaned down and tapped its nose to my forehead. Everyone gasped.

“What?” I asked. “Did it get something on my head?”

Caleb screamed in frustration in the distance while everyone nodded. Alex bent some water so I could see my reflection, where my head adorned an arrow tattoo I squeaked and turned to the airbender I was talking to before.

She smiled and explained, “The bison aren’t born with their arrows either. They get them when they learn to fly. Sky bison can give arrows and you just got yours. Congratulations.”

I placed my finger on my cheek. “But how did they know what I did?”

“They sensed it,” she responded. “They can tell that you did them a favor. The same way some animals can sense earthquakes before they happen.”

I smiled widely and pulled Flynn to my side. “What about her?” I questioned.

The elder airbender held her hands out, a bison whistle in her palm. “If you ever need assistance from a sky bison, you have one at your side. Use it well.”

Flynn took the whistle graciously and bowed before slipping it into her pocket.

I wrapped my arms around all of my friends. “Two down, two to go. The lion turtles should be easy enough because if Caleb could corrupt them, Alex can heal them because he’s that good.” Alex and Willie pressed kisses to my cheeks and I let myself fall backward for Luke to catch me. Julie gave me a high five and Flynn rolled her shoulders backward.

“Next up is the Northern Water Tribe. There’s no way in hell Caleb is getting their first and I’m sure the air nomads can’t be corrupted again,” she stated

I kissed Alex softly. “I know what that place means to you. It’ll be okay.”

Alex’s expression softened and he held my jaw. “Of course it will be. Because my kickass friends are here to help.”

Luke’s eyes flashed gold as he brushed a hand across my arrow. “Then let’s get moving!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reggie uses "air nomads" so many times instead of "airbenders" because at the time he addresses them, they can't bend.


	12. ATLA AU Part 4: Tui and La

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We got to 100 kudos! Tysm!
> 
> Tw for this chapter: Graphic blood and gore, near death, actual death, trauma. Enjoy the chapter!

_ Flynn’s PoV _

_ Wow, they look so happy. _

Luke and Julie were cuddled next to each other around a campfire produced by Luke’s dragonflame.

_ He could’ve easily done it with regular fire but  _ noo  _ he just has to show off for _ ー

I sighed

_ Cool it, Flynn. Jealousy is a bad look on you. _

But they looked so happy. So happy like they weren’t even thinking about me… 

Willie pushed a kiss to Alex’s temple before standing and striding over to me. He sat next to me pointedly.

“What’s wrong, kid?” he asked.

I nudged him. “Don’t call me kid.”

“You still have to answer the question.”

I chewed the inside of my cheek, but only for a second before Willie grabbed my hand and shook his head “no.” I let my cheek snap from between my teeth and tried for a response.

“I don’t know, it’s justー I mean, Iー I feel… replaceable? I don’t know, it’s stupid.”

“Is it bothering you?”

“Yeah. It is.”

“Then it’s not stupid. You should talk to them about it. It's the newest trend, everyone's doing it. Luke with Bobby, Reggie with his parents. Alex is gonna do it once we're in the North Pole. If something is bothering you, let it out.”

I crossed my arms and huffed. “Fuck you, Mr. Logic.” Despite my words, I grinned, an action that Willie seemed happy to return.

Alex beckoned us over. “Okay, so we’re just outside the Northern Water Tribe,” he started to explain. “Willie, you’ll wait at the Spirit Oasis in case anyone shows up. You’re probably best-suited to handle them. Reggie and Luke, you’re with me while I confront mom and dad. Girls, try to get us a room in a hotel. Julie, if you need to, call in that favor.” Everyone nodded and split up after a few hugs and kisses.

Julie called behind us, “Let’s get this done guys!”

_ Julie’s PoV _

Flynn and I did our best to secure a room, but nowhere was willing to rent to teenagers. Even after Flynn did some name dropping, everywhere was expensive or we were outright refused. Flynn’s hand in mine, she spoke.

“You think it’s time to call in that favor?” she asked. I ghosted a nod and tightened my expression as we approached the palace where the Northern Chief and prince resided.

Only the Prince was there. Flynn and I bowed respectfully and I sighed. “Hey, Nick.”

Nick smiled and pulled me into a hug, something I wasn’t expecting. “Julie! Flynn! It’s so good to see you guys. Come, come, let’s eat and catch up.”

I frowned. “You’re not mad that I…”

“...rejected me for Luke and Flynn? Nah. You were a good friend before and I want you to be a good friend now. So come on, no hard feelings. Besides, I think you’re here to have me pull some strings, right?”

Flynn beamed and pulled Nick into a side hug. “You bet. We need somewhere to stay while we save Tui and La. Can you help us out?”

Nick led us to a table and ordered us drinks before responding. “Sure thing. But I have one request.”

I glared. “I knew it. What do you want?”

Nick’s smile faltered but he continued. “I want to join you guys on your adventures! I know things might be awkward but I’m tired of being cooped up in the palace. Please please please?”

Flynn and I spoke at the same time, our answers contradicting one another.

“Of course!”

“No.”

Flynn turned to me. “Why not?”

I crossed my arms. “Everyone is dating each other and I don’t want him to feel left out. Plus there’s his dad to worry about.”

Nick shrugged. “I won’t feel excluded and as for my dad, he’s uh, stopped caring about what I do. So how about this? I’ll set you guys up with a hotel room and you think about my request.”

His smile was genuine so I nodded. “Deal.” I projected to have Reggie relay the news and started toward the inn we’d be staying at.

_ Alex’s PoV _

I glared at my parents. “We need to talk.” The big house near the Northern Palace was quiet, aside from my words. I wasn’t taking “no” for an answer. Reggie had scootered away to tell Willie the news but he was back by now.

Warily, my dad and mom took a seat at the table. I formed two chairs of ice for Luke and Reggie to sit on either side of me.

My dad looked between my boyfriends and me scaldingly. “So what’s this about? You back here to beg for forgiveness?”

I bit my tongue before responding: “No. Because I didn’t do anything wrong. Mother, father, these are two of my boyfriends, Luke and Reggie. I love them both very much. I’m here for closure. I’m not afraid of you.”

My mom frowned. “Alex, you’re a waterbender. The first in our family for spirits know how long. You’ve always been our golden boy, and if it weren’t for this one flaw, you’d be perfect. Stop this gay experiment and come home.”

I felt angry tears spring to my eyes and repeated myself. “These are two of my boyfriends. I love them both very much.”

My dad rolled his eyes. “If he’s going to cry, we’re not having this discussion.” He looked at my mom as if to say, _“Look at this idiot._ _Clearly, he needs to be taught again.”_ My dad stood up and put his face centimeters from mine. “Man up.” I let a tear fall, just to see what would happen. He drew his hand back and slapped me hard. I didn’t acknowledge the pain.

“Sit back down,” I commanded. My dad drew his hand back again and I allowed my rage to consume me. I felt for the water in his body and slammed my hand on the table. He was back in his seat. “I wasn’t done talking.” Fear in their eyes, my parents gulped. I could feel Luke and Reggie’s surprised stares as I continued. “What the fuck is wrong with you people? I’m your fucking child. I’m a  _ person.  _ The way you treated me is unacceptable, to say the least, and I could kill you right now and not feel bad. I could cause a stroke. Stop your heart. Turn your blood to ice and let it rip you apart. I could turn this house into a puddle on a whim. But I won’t. Because I have a fucking heart. You two have abused and tortured me for years, even after I ran away, you haunted me. But you don’t have power anymore. I do. And I don’t intend to give it back.” I thought of my sister, sleeping upstairs who would never know I came. “You’ll give Sadie as good of a life as you can. My wonderful boyfriend here can project his spirit and find you, it would not be difficult. I will always know what you’re doing so treat her well no matter what. Do you understand me?” Not once did my expression change from a cold, blank stare.

My parents nodded rapidly and I released my hold on my father. I stood up and started toward the door. I heard two pairs of footsteps behind me as I left the house and started the path to the Spirit Oasis.

After I had gotten a good few meters up the trail, Luke tackled me in a hug and Reggie placed kisses up and down my neck and face. I laughed as Reggie said, “Oh my  _ spirits,  _ you were sexy back there. I’ve never seen that side of you before. That was the hottest thing I’ve seen in my fucking life, we love you so much, Alex.”

I giggled and threw my arms around Luke and Reggie. “I love you guys too. Best boyfriends ever. I totally thought I’d crack in there.”

Luke waved his arms wildly. “You were like woah, and they were like smack, and then you went, ‘Bloodbending, bitches!’”

I gathered some snow from the ground, using it to heal the small pain left behind in my cheek. “Thank you both so much for being there with me, I couldn’t have done it without you.”

Reggie bit the side of my neck. “You’re so fucking hot.”

I kissed his forehead and nudged him away. “And busy. Maybe later, but right now, we have spirits to save. And we’re not fucking on the trail to the Ocean and Moon spirits, you jackalope.”

I thought of healing the bruise he left behind before deciding against it and continuing toward the Spirit Oasis.

_ Willie’s PoV _

I was standing guard at the Spirit Oasis just as Alex directed. Nothing had gone wrong and Tui and La circled each other in a captivating dance. Losing myself in the pond would be easy.  _ So, so easy… _

A voice behind me shook me from my trance.

“Well, well, well.” Turning, I noticed Covington with a smug look on his face, his arms crossed.

“Three ‘wells,’ never a good sign,” I deadpanned. “Caleb.”

“William. Good to see you again.”

Something bubbled and boiled inside me. Maybe it was the time I’d been spending with Luke and Flynn. Maybe it was Caleb’s annoying expression. But I couldn’t hold in my anger any longer. I had dealt with bullshit from Caleb Covington for far too long and I refused to do it anymore.

“I don’t agree,” I began. “You’re scum of the earth and I can’t wait to see you behind bars when this is all said and done. I’d love nothing more than to smack you across the face right now and I’m tempted to do so. But I’m not letting you sidetrack me so you can kill the ocean and moon spirits. My word means something and because of that, I’m leaving you in the past. If I were a violent person, you’d be in a pool of lava by now.” Every word was cathartic, my own bravado egging me on. Caleb’s own face began to fall. “I hope I’m cutting you deep. I hope you’re hurt. I hope you’re  _ suffering.  _ I’ll make you sorry. I’ll make you upset. I’ll make you cry.”

“I’ll make you suffer.” Caleb lunged and I couldn’t react.

_ Shit. _

  
  


_Alex’s PoV_

I felt brave and I felt powerful. The full moon amped me up, Reggie and Luke jogging to keep up with my steps. Everything was great.

Until it wasn’t.

Upon reaching the Oasis, I saw Willie. Willie and Caleb. A knife of ice was pressed to Willie’s throat. Tui and La seemed fine but other than that, nothing seemed to be in place. Random sections of earth had turned to lava, depicting Willie’s struggle against the position he was in. Suddenly, a voice was in my head.

_ “You’re a powerful master of water with a pure heart,”  _ it whispered.  _ “We’ll help you if you rid us of the evil one.” _

I nodded and Caleb pressed his knife closer to Willie’s throat. All of my confidence faded. I was panicking. I begged with my eyes.  _ No, please. Don't take him from me.  _ Caleb either didn't understand or didn't care.

Caleb rolled his eyes in clear boredom. “Give me access to the Ocean and Moon spirits or I'll cut your boyfriend's throat. You have ten seconds to decide. Ten.”

I took a step forward and Caleb's arm twitched. “Five,” he said.

“No, wait,” I begged. “He hasn't done anything, he has nothing to do with this, he's not a waterbender, please.”

“Four.”

Tears sprung to my eyes, threatening to spill over my eyelashes.

“Three.”

I looked over to Willie who was crying and shaking his head no. A sad smile was offered to me by him, not that it helped.

“Two.”

Hope was gone. I started to cry and beg harder. It fell on deaf ears. My anxiety was peaking as my panic rose. The world seemed to close in and everything started to go dark. Hot tears rolled down my face with no restraint. I was going to lose Willie.

“One. Time's up.”

I let out a guttural scream, “NO!”

_ Splat. _

I choked on my own sobs and fell to the ground, my entire body suddenly warm. But not for the right reason.

_ What the  _ fuck  _ have I done? _

_ Willie’s PoV _

  
When I heard a  _ squish,  _ I assumed that Caleb had stabbed me and it was all over. Then, I felt a warmth on the back of my neck. Alex’s front was covered in blood and guts. I wiped the back of my neck then shook my hand off when brain matter was discovered there. Alex’s sobs made me feel cold and afraid. Fragments of bones were everywhere, whether in the Spirit Pond or next to Caleb’s knife, which now lay lamely on the ground. Everything was still aside from a dim glow coming from Tui and La. Alex’s screams and sobs intensified as a black and white streak colored itself in his hair and a mark resembling a tattoo of Yin and Yang was now present on his cheek. No one spoke. There was nothing to say. All we could do was stand there and watch my favorite boy breaking. I didn’t cry. I didn’t feel sad or scared, even if Caleb had exploded in a gruesome display of bloodbending prowess. I was just worried. For Luke, Reggie, and Alex. My boy Alex. I wish I had helped him back to our hotel room. Instead, we waited for Julie and Flynn while Alex’s cries carried themselves into the night. Luke had small blood droplets splattered on his face and clothes, Reggie in a similar state of appearance. We stood still as time seemed to. It was an hour before the girls showed up. It was three before we got Alex to stand. Three and a half to get him to the room, and he never got to sleep. I listened to him shaking the entire night. When I wrapped my arm around him, he gasped and I pulled away immediately. I was useless. And I could tell that Alex wasn't going to be okay. Not for a long time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We got to meet Nick. Yay!  
> The next couple of chapters are gonna be a break from their quest so they can focus on Alex and his recovery. As for Caleb, yes, he's dead. He won't be returning.


	13. ATLA AU Part 5: Intermission 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys are by themselves to take care of Alex who delves into some questionable coping mechanisms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cw for this chapter: Sexual content (Nothing above a PG-13 rating)

_ Reggie’s PoV _

A week had passed and Alex hadn’t spoken a word. The only times he made a noise was when he was crying or screaming in the middle of the night. He lost a lot of weight as we never saw him eat, we just had to trust he was doing it.

Alex caught us all by surprise around one when he came into the kitchen of the suite Nick had reserved us a room in. Julie and Flynn eventually let him join us on the condition that they don’t get hunted by angry royalty and the three of them had set off to save the badgermoles. The circles under Alex’s eyes seemed darker by the day.

“Hey, Waterboy? How’s it going?” Willie asked.

Alex mumbled something we couldn’t understand before grabbing a fish and taking it back to his bed.

I frowned. “I guess he’s getting food now. Although he probably should’ve grabbed a fork and plate.”

Willie’s face matched mine. “It’s progress,” he said. “It’s not much but he’s getting there.”

_ Alex’s PoV _

I barely nibbled at the fish but I could hear my boyfriends worrying from my room. I figured I’d let them think I was getting better. A few days ago, Luke forced me to wash my hair so there wasn’t dry blood in it anymore. I even made an effort to do something with my hair and its new streaks until I got sick of my reflection. I noticed the hickey Reggie left after my parents’ house and smirked. I just needed a distraction.

_ Reggie’s PoV _

I was caught off guard when Alex walked up behind me while Luke, Willie, and I were still sitting around the table. He leaned down and kissed the top of my head. Luke and Willie shot me a look but I seriously had no clue what was happening. One day he’s barely waking up and the next he’s super cuddly?

Alex leaned into my ear. “Come to me and Willie’s room in ten minutes,” he whispered, his voice scratchy from a lack of use.

I furrowed my eyebrows in suspicion. “How come?”

Alex chuckled. “Because I want you. Make me scream your name.”

Apparently, Willie and Luke heard because despite swallowing the lumps in their throats and wiggling their eyebrows at me, they traded looks that said,  _ this might not be as good as we think it is. He should tread carefully.  _

Ten minutes later, I was in Alex’s room of the suite that he shared with Willie. He fisted my collar and dragged me on top of him once we settled into the bed. He kissed with everything he had and it was difficult to remember that I was supposed to keep an eye on him. My lips were on fire. Everything was on fire. Alex started to peel back my jacket and shirt, our kiss only breaking so he could get them off. Despite the temperature of the North Pole, I wasn’t cold. He sucked marks into any part of my skin he could get to.

I raised my fingers as I listed things off. “Do you haveー”

“Yep.”

“How aboutー”  
“I do.”

“Alex, are you sure you wantー”

“Yes.” Alex’s lips reconnected with mine again as he fingered the loops on my jeans.

I pulled away just to say, “Then let’s get on with it.”

_ Luke’s PoV _

It seemed that Alex’s request was fulfilled. We could hear the bed creaking and yells of  _ “Oh spirits, Reggie!”  _ throughout the rest of the suite. Willie and I had migrated to the bed in my room where we discussed Alex’s condition.

I began, “Yesterday he cried when we touched him, and today he’s dragging Reggie to bed. Call me a pessimist but something seems off.” The headboard of Alex and Willie’s bed hit the wall.

Willie stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Definitely. Maybe he’s trying to reestablish some normality?”

“Yeah, maybe we’re looking a gift ostrich-horse in the mouth?”

_ “Fuck, Reggie! Reggie!” _

“He might be doing it because he feels like a burden otherwise?” said Willie.

“Nah, in the end, Alex won’t do things he doesn’t want to do. Maybe he thinks it’ll help him sleep?”

“Hm, maybe. Should that be what we’re going with?”

“Seems it.”

Reggie’s groan was faint but still audible. A few minutes later, Reggie walked out of the room, hair sweaty and messy, and  _ was that Alex’s shirt? _

He was clearly blissed out. “Take the shirt off, babe, I wanna see something,” I said from our room.

Reggie approached and stuck his tongue out. “Huh, more direct than usual.”

I rolled my eyes and Reggie complied, dark spots littering his torso and neck.

“You look like you had an orgy with a bunch of grapes,” Willie deadpanned.

Reggie waved his hand dismissively and fell on the bed, a big dopey smile spread across his face.

Willie scoffed, “That bad, huh?”

Reggie cuddled into my lap, his head resting on my chest. “It was great. I think Alex is doing a lot better. He seemed really happy, no complaints here. And the way heー”

“Focus, Airhead,” Willie said. “What’s he doing now?”

Reggie laughed, “That’s the best part! We did some aftercare, I got him to bathe, then he went right to sleep.”

My eyes bulged. “No screaming?”

Reggie smiled proudly. “Nope.”

Willie narrowed his own eyes. “Crying?”

“Nuh-uh.”

I smiled before I sniffed the air and ruffled Reggie’s hair. “You didn’t bathe, I can tell. You smell like sex.”

Reggie sighed. “I don’t wanna get up.”

I leaned back and pulled Reggie into a more comfortable position. “I’ll give you an hour, then you have to wash and change your clothes.”

Willie chuckled. “You guys are adorable. How’re you both holding up after seeing Caleb explode?”

I shrugged. “I’m fine. I electrocuted Bobby, which was very capable of killing him. I came to terms with it when it happened. It was more of a jump scare than anything.”

Reggie shifted to face Willie. “I’m with Luke. All life is sacred, but Alex had no control and I’ve seen gruesome stuff before. I don’t blame him and we’re really glad you’re safe.”

Reggie’s breathing slowed almost immediately and soon he was sleeping. Alex woke up at some point and limped into the room, wasting no time in forcing us all into a cuddle pile. The truly shocking thing was that there were none of the usual shouts or screams. For the first time in a week, Alex looked well-rested, even going the extra mile to do his hair. The streaks in his hair seemed to be as abnormal as possible. The black streak seemed to act like water, ripples spreading through it when poked, and constantly shifting and moving like the ocean. The white streak was hard to notice at first, but it glowed faintly with moonlight. I kept my hands in his hair, not only for the sheer awesomeness of its new magical properties but also because I’ve known for ages that Alex’s love language is physical affection. 

Willie fell asleep soon and I was just about ready to follow suit when Alex gasped.

_ Alex’s PoV _

_ “Three.” _

_ I looked over to Willie who was crying and shaking his head no. A sad smile was offered to me by him, not that it helped. _

_ “Two.” _

_ Hope was gone. I started to cry and beg harder. It fell on deaf ears. My anxiety was peaking as my panic rose. The world seemed to close in and everything started to go dark. Hot tears rolled down my face with no restraint. I was going to lose Willie. _

_ “One. Time's up.” _

_ I let out a guttural scream, “NO!” _

Splat.

I gasped and nearly jumped away from my boyfriends. The high had worn off and everything was rushing back. Was that it, then? Just keep going as much as I could?

Luke grabbed my hands and stroked his thumbs on the backs. “You okay, love?” he asked, concern evident in his tone.

I forced my lips to curl into a grin. “I was just thinking of how absolutely  _ stunning  _ you look today.”

Luke’s own smile was tight. “Really? You just went with Reggie, are you sure you have the energy to…”

I nodded rapidly. “Yep!”

Luke’s eyes narrowed. “Is that so? Because I’ve never heard you use the word ‘stunning’ before in my life.”

“Well, I’m  _ trying  _ to seduce you.”

With a smirk, Luke replied, “Then who am I to deny you?”

Soon enough, we were back in my room, Luke’s shirt already halfway off. “I don’t want to be able to think,” I said. Something I couldn’t place flashed across Luke’s face before he was on top of me again.

He took my bottom lip between his teeth and when I gasped, he pushed his tongue inside. Our tongues battled for dominance (A/N: That one’s for you, Crispy, I did the dare), Luke eventually winning. He had memorized the inside of my mouth by then and wasted no time using that to his advantage. I groaned and broke the kiss again to get my own shirt off. 

_ What was I upset about again? I don’t know, something with waterbending I think? _

Luke pinned my arms over my head and kissed down to my collarbone before moving back up to my lips.

“Color?” he breathed, only moving away for a moment so I could respond.

“Green!” I nearly yelled in an attempt to get Luke back on me quicker. His smile returned and everything after that is hazy.

_ Willie’s PoV _

I woke up when I heard Alex moaning.  _ “Luke, fuck, please! Fuck, Luke, ah!”  _

I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and looked down at Reggie. He looked beautiful, to say the least. Smiling down at him, I kissed his forehead, which stirred him awake.

_ He's so cute. But I just wanted to wake him up. There's nothing more to it, right? _

Reggie sleepily grinned up and me and moved to sit in my lap. He faced me and rested his head on my shoulder before popping awake when another scream, courtesy of Alex rang through the room.

“Heh, sleep well?” I asked.

Reggie nodded, his eyes still half-closed. I smelled his hair and cringed backward.

“You do need to soak, wow. Go ahead and do it, I’ll wait here for somebody.” Reggie smiled back in response and kissed my cheek before getting up to go clean himself up. I held a hand to my cheek.

_ Okay, I need to talk to Alex and Luke. Hopefully soon. _

_ “Luke, I’m _ _ ー Iー AH!” _

When Luke stumbled into the room, I smirked to myself. “Have fun?”

Luke’s smile reached his ears. “He seemed better than usual. More energetic.”

“Uh-huh… anyway, are you in the right state of mind for me to tell you something?”

“Yeah, yeah. I’d tell you something but I can’t remember it right now.” Luke stumbled and fell into my lap. I hugged him tightly.

“I think I have a crush on Reggie.”

“Okay, cool. Can I ask a question?”

“Of course.”

“I thought you said you didn’t like him like that. After the dragons.”

“I didn’t think I did. But he’s so cute and makes me feel warm and secure, and I like how his hair smells after he washes it…”

“...and how he’s funny and likes to help people.” Luke grinned at me smugly. “You’ve got it bad, dude. Do you need the shovel talk or can I pass out now?”

I ruffled Luke’s hair. “Go ahead and pass out, I’ll put you down when Reggie gets out of the bathroom.”

Reggie was out and changed ten minutes later. I set Luke beside me on the bed and looked at Reggie, whose hair was dripping wet and had brand new clothes on including…  _ my hoodie? _

“You’ll wear anyone’s clothes but your own, huh?” I remarked.

Reggie shrugged. “It’s comfy. I’m gonna go cuddle with Alex some, you wanna join?”

“Yeah, always.”

We got up and moved to my room. Reggie cuddled into Alex’s side while I lay on top of his chest. Alex stirred for a few seconds before his breathing steadied underneath me. I ran my thumb along Alex’s tattoo which seemed to shimmer when I touched it.

“Hey, no homo but you’re really cute,” Reggie muttered beside me.

“No homo? Why not?” I watched proudly as Reggie’s face turned red. I didn’t miss the fluttering in my stomach. “Hey, Reg?”

“Yeah, Willie?”

“I love you. And I think you’re really cute too.”

“Why?”

“Why do I think you’re cute?”

Reggie suddenly sat up straight and I moved to sit criss-cross in front of him, making sure my hand stayed on Alex’s stomach. “Why do you love me?” he clarified.

_ Wow, they really did a number on him, huh? _

“Yeah, they did,” Reggie murmured solemnly.

I frowned. “I didn’t say that out loud, did I?”

“I… think you did… think something else.”

_ Alex’s new hair is cool. _

“‘Alex’s new hair is cool.’”

_ Luke and Julie look nice in flower crowns. _

“‘Luke and Julie look nice in flower crowns.’”

_ Trees are tall. _

“‘Trees are tall.’”

_ And I think _ ー

“And you think…”

_ I’m falling in love _ ー

“You’re falling in love…”

_ With _ ー

“With…”

_ STOP! _

Reggie jumped. I did my best to think of anything. Anything not Reggie. “Can you get out of my head?”

“I-I-I can try.” Reggie closed his eyes in deep concentration.

After a while, I thought,  _ Ostrich-horses. _

Reggie looked at me expectantly. “Did you think anything?”

I exhaled, visibly relieved. “Yeah, I did.”

Reggie looked down. “If you’d like, you can answer the question still. I really don’t get why anyone thinks they love me.”

I grabbed Reggie’s chin so he would be forced to look at me. “You’re funny for one thing. No one can make me laugh harder. Also, you’re super cool. Awesome fashion sense, really sweet, and you can read my mind! How cool is that? And you’re so, so cute. You have beautiful eyes, your arrow makes them pop out…” Reggie swallowed and his blush deepened. “The way you bite your lip when you’re deep in thought. Your beautiful, soft lips…” It was as if I was outside of my own body. I leaned forward toward Reggie. He closed his eyes and moved toward me.

“What are you guys doing?”

Reggie and I jumped apart as Alex forced himself into a sitting position. “Were you guys about to kiss?” he asked.

I reached to grab his hand. “Yeah, I think so.”

Alex chewed his lip until I shook my head and he let it from between his teeth. “Do you guys still love me?”

Reggie pulled Alex’s head into his chest. “Oh, Lexi, of course. Of course, we love you, we love you so much.”

Alex smiled. “Then I’m okay with it. Sure, you guys can kiss, I don’t care. Can I have kisses?”

Without a word, Reggie and I kissed all of Alex’s face. He outright giggled and pulled us into a hug. Reggie looked at me and I heard his voice, though he wasn’t speaking.

_ “I’m trying something. Can you hear me?” _

_ Yeah, I hear you. How can you read minds? _

_ “I don’t know. I tried with Alex, I can read his mind just fine. But we need to talk.” _

_ I agree, we do. _

_ “Am I the one you’re falling in love with?” _

_ There’s no point in lying since you’re in my head. Yeah, you are. _

_ “Would you want to date me?” _

_ Yes… no… I don’t know, I’m sorry. Yes, I want to kiss you and cuddle you and tell you how amazing you are, but also Alex needs a lot of attention right now and I didn’t think I liked you. _

_ “I’m with you on that one. Let’s try it out and agree that Alex comes first right now. I don’t love either of you any more or less than the other one, I just think Alex should be the top priority.” _

_ I couldn’t agree more. So should we tell him now? _

_ “I guess.” _

I spoke up. “Hey, Waterboy?”

Alex hummed, “Hm?”

Reggie kissed his forehead. “Willie and I are gonna try dating each other, okay?”

Alex smiled. “M’kay. You guys want some alone time?”

“Maybe later,” I said. “Right now we wanna be with you.”

Alex pulled us tight against him. “When did you guys decide to date. Right now? I didn’t hear you speaking.”

“Apparently, I can read minds,” Reggie explained.

Alex jumped away and out of the bed. “No, you can’t. Shut the fuck up, stop lying.”

Reggie cringed as he said: “I’m not lying. Think something. Anything.” After a moment, Reggie recited, “For once in a lifetime, watermelon pants, sit in the roof, festival savings.”

I raised an eyebrow. “That made no sense.”

Alex started to cry. “But he’s right. He knows I’m a terrible person. He can keep seeing what I did. I-Iー Willie! Here, come on.” Alex threw himself onto the bed beside me. He ripped his shirt off of his chest. “Come on, Willie, what’s taking so long? Let’s get to it, your turn.”

Reggie held his hand out. “Alex, you’re in a panic. Calm down so we can talk about it.”

Alex grabbed Reggie’s hand and moved it to his throat. “Hey, you can join too. That should be fun.”

Reggie pulled his hand back and said calmly yet firmly. “Alex, you can’t keep using sex as a coping mechanism.”

Alex froze.

Then he broke.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After a few of these intermission chapters, there'll be a chapter with the story of how Flynn, Julie, and Nick saved the badgermoles.  
> -  
> I don't normally ship Willie and Reggie but I accidentally gave them chemistry and decided to follow through.  
> -  
> Should I make this AU its own story in my profile? Let me know in the comments!


	14. ATLA AU Part 6: Intermission 2

_ Wille’s PoV _

Luke must have woken up to the sounds of Alex’s screams. He ran into the room where Alex’s head stayed in his knees. I reached my hand to Alex’s knee when he jerked and suddenly I was being bloodbent at the wall.

_ But it’s not a full moon. _

I caught sight of the black and white in Alex’s hair spread like a frost until his hair like a spiral pattern. Soon, it was a completely different look than normal as not only did the colors change but it whipped upward as if blown by the wind despite the lack thereof. I noticed his Yin Yang mark starting to spin as ice peeled itself off of the walls and turned to snow, creating a frozen bubble in which Alex’s sobbing form was held. The hotel started to rumble so that we had to scream over the noise.

“I’m going to try to talk to him!” Reggie yelled before closing his eyes in deep thought. I looked away from him and moved toward Alex with Luke. There was barely any earth nearby and using it wasn’t a favorable option. I filed it away as a last resort.

In less than thirty seconds, Alex roared, “Get out of my fucking head!” An ice spike I narrowly dodged materialized from the snow bubble and shot forward. I faintly heard it shatter against the wall behind me. It seemed mind-reading wasn’t going to work.

“Waterboy!” I called. “I know, you’re scared but you need to stop.”

Alex cried, “I just hurt people. I’m such a shitty person. I didn’t mean to kill him, I just wanted you to be safe. You guys should go. Please, go! I don’t want you guys to suffer just because I’m around. If you won’t do it for yourselves, do it for me,  _ please.” _

“No, Alex,” Luke cut in. “We love you for you. We love the way you pace. We love your adorable laugh and beautiful singing. Your hilarious jokes whenever we annoy you. We love  _ you _ , Love. A lot more people will get hurt if you don’t calm down. Please, take some breaths with me.”

Luke exaggerated deep breaths and I followed along with him. The swirl of snow slowed before falling lamely to the ground. Alex took stuttering breaths but it was clear enough that he was making an effort. I walked toward Alex and kissed his cheek before I was interrupted.

“Hey, is everyone done?” I turned to Reggie and gasped. “Cool, because ow.” Reggie fell to the side.

A gaping hole with traces of ice rimming it was present in his stomach. I thought back to the ice spike and got lightheaded.

_ No, please. Reggie, please. _

I sprinted to Reggie and kneeled beside him, trying to think of anything I could do to help. “Hey, Airhead,” I choked out. “Please be okay. We never even got to go on a date, heh. Say something to me, bud.”

Alex and Luke were full-on wailing as Reggie cracked his eyes open and smiled dejectedly. “It’ll be okay, Willie,” he said. “I’ll be fine, I promise.” He cringed. “Okay, maybe not. Just, here.” Reggie leaned up and pressed a weak kiss to my lips. “Take care of Luke and Lexi, okay? Don’t blame him. I love you guys so much.”

Reggie started to cry and I could easily make out his heartbeat slowing just by looking through the hole just below it. I turned to Alex who hadn’t slowed in his crying but looked around for any sort of water before settling on the snow around his feet. He gathered it into a ball which glowed, then turned red.

“What’re you doing, love?” Luke asked through his sobs.

“I’m going to try something. I can only hope it works.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is short on purpose. I just love torturing you all :)  
> -  
> Next chapter will be out soon!


	15. ATLA AU Part 7: Intermission 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The end of Alex's recovery (I had to cut it short because I'm working on something else). Enjoy! And tell me how I can improve or what you like.

_Willie's PoV_

Alex walked over to Reggie and let the red water sit in his stomach. Before our eyes, Reggie’s organs, then skin stitched themselves together. Alex shuddered but didn’t stop until the color had returned to Reggie’s face. Reggie shot up and looked around bewildered before his eyes landed on Alex and smashed a kiss to his lips.

Reggie all but glared at me and Luke. “I’m literally about to make him incapable of thought so you guys can leave or you can join.”

I raised an eyebrow at Reggie. “I thought we said he couldn’t keep usingー”

“Oh no,” Reggie interrupted. “This is for me if Alex is okay with it.”

Alex pulled Reggie to the bed and whispered an “always” when I figured it was time to take my leave.

I yanked Luke to his own room and hugged him tightly. “I know,” I said. “We have to talk about Alex but right now, I’m so happy. Reggie is okayー we’re dating now, by the wayー and Alex waterbent for the first time since the incident and I guess he can fix holes in peopleー”

“While having his destroyed,” Luke quipped.

“ーand apparently his hair colors morph or something? How cool is that?” The rumbling of the hotel stopped, implying that Alex had restored it to its previous state.

Luke smiled. “Yeah, it was a ride but I’m so relieved. Hopefully, he can sleep this off.”

I pouted. “Now the serious stuff?”

Luke agreed, “Now the serious stuff. I know it’s hard. He accidentally killed Caleb and accidentally hurt Reggie just now. We can’t fault him entirely. But he has to get his emotions under control.”

I chewed my lip. “Easier said than done. Waterbenders, in general, are more emotional than others, much less Alex, our wonderful anxious boyfriend.”

Luke twirled his hands in his hair and started tugging. I shook my head and he let it go. “I don’t know,” he whispered. “I just want to be able to help him but this is unprecedented. And Reggie can read minds? Life was so simple before this stupid ass mission.”

I held my arms out and Luke climbed inside. Soon enough, he was snoring softly. I heard my bed creaking and let it lull me to sleep.

_ Alex’s PoV _

I pulled Reggie to the bed and just barely registered Willie and Luke leaving. Reggie rested his hands on my hips and spoke from above me.

“This will be your third time today. Are you fully aware of and okay with that?” he asked.

“Spirits,  _ yes,  _ Reggie. I will never do something I don’t want to, okay?”

“Okay,” Reggie finished with a smile. He pushed a kiss against my neck that sent shocks down my spine.

“R-reg. Reggie!”

“Hm, yes, Lexi?” Reggie purred in response.

“Don’t stop, please.”

“Of course.”

Purple spots had already covered most of my body and Reggie wanted to make it his personal mission to add more. He quite literally ripped my shirt off, latching his mouth to my ribs immediately.

“Reggie!”

“Hm?”

“IーfuckーI love you!”

“I love you too, Alex.”

...

Reggie had finished showering and he laid down next to me.

“Hey, Lexi?”

“Yeah, Reg.”

“I love you, okay? I promise I’ll never give up on you.” I stayed silent. “Alex, you still up?”

“Yeah, I’m just processing is all. I don’t understand.”

“Don’t understand what? Rapidfire, go.”

“I don’t understand why Caleb blew up or how you can read minds or why I’m suddenly so powerful or why you love me so much, especially since you don’t love yourself, no offense. I love you so much but then you don’t get why so why should I accept your love? I’m not any better than you.”

Reggie took a second to think, then turned to kiss the side of my head. “I’ll answer as best I can. Caleb blew up because you were desperate and waterbending gets more powerful when you’re emotional, you said it yourself. Now you’re even more powerful because somehow you fused with Tui and La. I don’t know why I can read minds, but I’ll never go in your head unless it’s necessary or you want me to. I love you so much because you’re silly and keep me calm. You have beautiful lips and an amazing body. You’re romantic and make me blush. You were my best friend turned boyfriend, how awesome is that? You’re always comfortable to cuddle with, you let me wear your clothes. You’re just… perfect. I know I’m bad at accepting affection but that’s because I’m scared. I’m scared of being too affectionate and losing you and after my parents, I worry. For a long time, I thought fighting was a sign of love. Then I met you and Luke and I learned what love really is. You introduced me to Willie and now I have three boyfriends. So I’m by no means perfect but I’m doing my best to get better. I just don’t see the good qualities in myself so it’s hard.”

My lip trembled and suddenly I was crying. Reggie pulled me on top of him. “Oh, ‘Lex, I love you so much. You’re great. Let it all out.”

“I’m s-so s-s-s-sorry, I d-didn’t mean to cry.”

“Hey, look at me.” I looked up to see Reggie crying too. “I’m not above you. We’re allowed to cry.”

I sniffled. “We probably want to get dressed, huh?”

Reggie ran his hands through my hair. “I just want to lay here with you for a while. I’m so in love with you, you’re amazing.”

“Can we kiss?”

“Always.” He leaned up to capture my lips in another mind-melting kiss. The kiss wasn’t like any others I’d had that day. It was soft and full of pure love.

I rested on top of Reggie once more and started to doze off. He kissed the top of my head and suddenly I was in darkness.

...

I woke up and Reggie was sleeping beside me. Normally he would’ve left to go talk to Willie and Luke. I could see the razor poking out of Willie’s bag. The pull was nearly magnetic. I moved from Reggie and limped to Willie’s toiletries. I grabbed the razor and looked at my arm. I pushed it against my wrist, already feeling a small sting.

_ “I just want to lay here with you for a while. I’m so in love with you, you’re amazing.” _

I looked back over to Reggie’s sleeping form. His hair was tousled and his breathing was steady. Sighing, I dropped the razor back in the bag and went back to bed, admiring my boyfriend until he started to wake.

“Good evening,” I cooed while he rubbed his eyes.

“G’mrnin”

“Sleep well?”

Instead of replying, Reggie wrapped his arms around me. “I’m still sleepy,” he whined.

“I think our other boyfriends might be sick of waiting.”

“Five more minutes.”

“If you get up now you can wear my special pink hoodie.”

Reggie rocketed out of bed, immediately shoving underwear up his legs.

“They’re backward,” I called. Reggie flipped the underwear and threw on a t-shirt and his ripped black jeans.

“Done! Now where’s the hoodie?” he asked. I gestured to the closet while I stood up to get dressed. Reggie fumbled into the hoodie, the sleeves a little too long for him.

I walked over to Reggie, still shirtless, and grabbed the ends of the sleeves which slightly covered his hands. I pushed a kiss to his lips.

“You look adorable,” I whispered.

Reggie faked a pout. “No, I’m strong and sexy.”

“And adorable.” I grabbed his hand and dragged him to his own room where Willie and Luke slept in each other’s arms. I held a finger to my lips before jumping on top of the bed with all of my weight. Luke and Willie jumped apart.

“How’d you sleep, himbos?” Reggie joked.

Luke yawned. “Shush, I’m not the himbo. Have you seen your arms?”

Reggie shrugged. “Fair.”

Willie put his hands in my hair and kissed my cheek. “How do you feel?”

I looked to Reggie. “We talked. I’m doing better but I don’t think I’ll ever be how I was before. I’m sorry.”

Luke slid down beside me. “It’s okay. We still love you so much. You might be traumatized. Okay, you’re totally traumatized, but you’re still Alexander Mercer. Our kind, very pretty boyfriend.”

I sniffled. “I love you guys so much.”

“We love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will focus on the badgermoles with Flynn, Nick, and Julie. It's gonna deal with how they're processing everything. Then it all leads up to the finale of this AU so stay tuned! Much love.


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